


All of the What If's

by auroraXborealis



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: 2000s, Alternate Universe - High School, Developing Friendships, Geeks, Labels, Light Angst, M/M, Slow Burn, Teenage Dorks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:27:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 31,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29772702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/auroraXborealis/pseuds/auroraXborealis
Summary: What if… Atem was the quiet theater kid?What if… Yugi was the outgoing jock?What if… they had never noticed each other?What if… they suddenly did?What if… just a string of tiny moments became a woven masterpiece?
Relationships: Atem/Mutou Yuugi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	1. Autumn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bewdofchaos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bewdofchaos/gifts).



> Sooooooooo...
> 
> This week was my one and only partner-in-crime's birthday! This gift has been months in the making, just so you know! You are an amazing person, and, sometimes, I still don't know what I did to deserve meeting you! I know the curiosity got to you, especially since I could not hide the fact I wa writing something for you, not like I really tried hihi! We lived many adventures together already, two wonderful collabs, and I raise my beer mug to many more of them!
> 
> I could say many things about this piece, but I will let it speak for itself :D  
> Happy birthday *kisses*
> 
> Love you and enjoy, dearest <3

_Life isn’t always about finding the right person._

_Sometimes, it’s more about finding the right moment._

++++++++++

Yugi could have sworn he had put his Chemistry manual inside his bag with the rest of his supplies. He could not have misplaced the very large and heavy book, he was sure of it, so why couldn’t he find it anywhere?

He emptied the content of his book bag dramatically on the table in a clatter of pencils, notebooks, paper clips and whatever else had taken residence at the bottom of it. A few students turned their heads his way at all the racket and he sheepishly mouthed a silence apology for disturbing all the other students around him.

He sighed as quietly as he could, crashing down on his wooden chair. He did not want to walk all the way back to his locker to get it, although he realised he might have to. His Chemistry exam was this Friday, and while he felt pretty assured he could pass it, he wanted to ace it. He liked the feeling of accomplishment he got from a job more than well done. He grabbed his notebook and highlighter for the moment and set on reviewing his carefully taken notes.

If anyone were to borrow them, they would probably find them very hard to read. He had never been one to carefully craft his handwriting, seeing as only he was supposed to be able to decipher it. He did make an effort on anything he handed in, but his notes? No time for that. Once, Jounouchi had asked for them after missing a class and had promptly given them back to him after witnessing the mess of spider webs they seemed to form on the pages.

Yugi scribbled down a few more words and highlighted what he felt were the most important things to review. He loved science classes and just diving back into any notion was fun to him. He found himself smiling as his brain put the pieces together easily. His digital watch beeped and he silenced it, too absorbed by his studies, before he remembered why he had set an alarm in the first place.

He stood up so quickly his chair fell back on the ground, creating another commotion in the otherwise quiet school library. This time, the librarian shushed him loudly and eyed him as if he had made the mistake of setting a book on fire. He quickly grabbed all his belongings, arranged them neatly in his backpack and walked briskly towards the library exit.

“So sorry, Adele!” he whispered as he passed the librarian who shook her head, but smiled at him nonetheless. Yugi knew it was always good to remember the names of people who could actually help you with a lot of things in life. She waved at him as he took his leave.

The corridors were busy with students walking down towards their various classes, and he almost got lost in the flow of teenagers as he remembered he needed to grab stuff from his locker before heading to the gym. He spun on his heels and hurried down the hall so focused on his destination that he almost bumped harshly into someone else.

He barely brushed shoulder with him, avoiding him at the very last second, but just enough for the other to recoil from the bump and continue on his way. Yugi took only a second to catch a glimpse of a young man, hair bursting out of a ponytail and large headphones secured on his head, a backpack balanced on one shoulder. He shrugged and continued on his way to his locker.

There, he grabbed his Chemistry book that was evidently still on the shelf, as well as his gym bag and shoes. He threw his backpack inside, not needing it for now, and jogged all the way to the school gymnasium. He headed straight for the locker room where he was instantly grabbed in a headlock by a taller teen.

“There you are, squirt!” Jou’s loud voice boomed against the metal of the lockers all around them. “Where was your little ass hiding this time?”

Yugi struggled away from the forced embrace. “Let go, Jou! I’m already late for practice!” he scuffled to his marked locker and proceeded to get dressed at lightning speed, only to turn around swiftly remembering something. “Wait… What are you still doing here when you should be out on the court already?”

A brunet with the pointiest brown hair appeared right next to the blonde with a wide smile. “Couldn’t let you go out there late all alone, right? Gotta take care of our little guy!”

The shortest of the trio sighed loudly as he pulled his t-shirt over his head and replaced it with his team one. “You guys will never stop teasing me about my height, right?”

Jou huffed and gestured towards Yugi. “Teasing you? We’re glorifying it! Dude, you made the basketball team! You’re like a goddamn miracle on your own.”

Honda laughed out loud as Yugi did the same, but very nervously. “And now I feel even more self-conscious, geez, thanks.”

The tall brunet grabbed the Chemistry book Yugi had laid on the bench and flipped through it. “The only thing you should be self-conscious about is the fact that you’re such a nerd might impact your reputation.”

The purple haired man flushed in embarrassment as he grabbed his manual and put in inside his locker before slamming the door shut in a metallic clank. “I’m not that much of a nerd,” he retorted.

Jou grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him out of the room, catching the frowning coach’s eyes and waving to him, without a care in the world. He turned to face his friend right after. “Yug, don’t think we haven’t seen you study while you change in the lockers before and after every practice.”

Yugi rolled his eyes. He did study every chance he got, he did not want his GPA to drop and he still had yet to decide what exactly he wanted to do once he graduated. He looked at all his basketball teammates on the court, some clearly more jocky than he was, some even eyeing him weirdly, still not believing he had made the team. Heck, even the coach sometimes could still not believe it. He was grateful his two best friends were by his side here too. He did not want to care about high school cliques, he really did not. Unfortunately, like every other teen, he still did. But it did not mean he would let himself get wound up by them if he could avoid it. “Besides, who cares right?” he replied to Jou. “I mean, about reputations.”

Honda ruffled his hair, which he promptly tried to tame back down, to no avail as always. “How could a junior like you be so wise?” the brunet replied.

Yugi grabbed a ball and threw it his way. “Gotta make up for the height, I guess.”

***

Days were pretty much the same routine to Atem.

Not that he minded it, he kind of liked knowing how his days were planned.

Routine helped calm his nerves, quieted the anxiety that had chosen to take residence inside his mind from a very early age.

At first, school had been a blast. All that learning and socialising… until it was not anymore. Until just walking down the corridors had become like climbing a mountain awkwardly with flip-flops. At first, he could not even do it on his own without wanting to vomit from all the stimuli his brain suffered. His best friend had been nice enough to sit down and understand his situation, and she had made it her mission to help him overcome this obstacle.

Although she had helped out a lot, as had done his other friends, he still was one to usually walk along the brick walls, avoiding as much contact with others as he could. He had taken on the habit of drowning the noises and the voices with large headphones playing a daily selection of music that would soothe his nerves. He did not need them in class, just in the corridors and the school bus mostly.

His French teacher, having noticed he often finished his work earlier, had also offered a few well-chosen books to occupy his overacting mind. He devoured them as if they were his life source, walking with his nose in them, so used to the nooks and crooks of the corridors he traveled daily.

The fact that senior year had finally arrived came as a relief. Atem loved learning, he always would, but the cliques and the constant conflicts and comments and eyes on the back of his head, he could do without. He did not know if the eyes were really there, but unfortunately, that was the biggest issue with having to deal with fragile nerves. He may not have looked like an overthinker, heck, he looked anything but the nervous wreck he felt.

Probably why he had managed to handle all those years of high school without being the center of anyone’s attention.

Now why he had been walking in the middle of the corridor that day was beyond his own comprehension. He must have drifted through the crowd unwillingly, taken by the words on the page right in front of his eyes, as he was heading down to his usual meeting spot where him and his friend would eat every single day.

His shoulder was brushed by another student as he instinctively buffeted the impact. He caught a quick glimpse of a boy about his size, dressed in a casual hoodie and jeans, rushing down the corridor. He muttered a quick apology, knowing that it was probably his fault anyway for not looking where he was going while traveling down the busy hallway. He hitched up the strap of his backpack against his shoulder and closed his book, careful now to avoid any other collision with the people passing him by.

Mana and Marik were already seated amongst some of their other friends when he arrived at the junction of two corridors where there was a tiny nook in the wall they used as an impromptu picnic spot. Mana scooted away from Marik and patted the spot between the two of them so Atem could sit down. He grabbed his lunch bag from his backpack and took a bite off his sandwich, setting his book right next to him.

Marik grabbed it and looked perplexed. “Wait… that’s a new book, right?”

Atem merely shrugged as he swallowed. “Yeah, why?”

His friend raised a quizzical eyebrow. “Weren’t you reading something else like… yesterday?”

Atem blinked a couple of times. “Yes, what’s your point?”

The other just flicked through all the pages of the novel rapidly before dropping it back down to the floor with an overdramatic sigh. “How can… I just don’t understand how you can read that fast!”

Mana jumped into the conversation, peeling a two-coloured cheese string and happily munching on it. “Well, if you did the actual work in class instead of daydreaming about Bakura and doodling in your agenda, maybe you’d have time to do… well, anything.”

Marik brandished an accusatory celery stack her way, right in front of Atem’s face who was once again stuck between his two best friends arguing. “I’m not-“

Mana grabbed the celery from him and took a large crunchy bite of it. “You totally are, don’t try to hide it from us!”

“You could ask him out,” Atem replied, sipping on his water bottle, not even looking at the two bickering teenagers next to him.

Marik looked offended that Atem was actually offering his input on the subject and nudged him on the shoulder, hard enough for the Egyptian to groan in surprise. “And you should mind your own business.”

Still alternating between snacking on her newly acquired celery and her mozzarella, Mana laid her head on his opposite shoulder casually. “Say, Atem, when are acting classes starting again?”

Atem handed a chocolate chip cookie to Marik, having made sure to pack an extra one for him like he did everyday. They clinked their cookies together before he took a bite of it. “This week, why?” he asked.

“Want us to wait for you after school?” she prompted immediately.

Atem sighed and rolled his eyes. “You do know I’m able to handle myself, right?”

Marik dropped a friendly kiss on his cheek, which Atem wiped playfully with a grimace. “Yeah, but it’s not like we mind,” the blonde answered.

“Well, I do mind spending an extra hour with you unsupervised without wanting to kill you, but I can manage for Atem’s sake.”

The light bickering between Mana and Marik started again as Atem smiled. He pulled out his portable cd player from his bag, perpetually linked to the headphones around his neck. He opened it up and changed the disk to another mix he had crafted two weeks prior. He replaced the other one carefully into its case as he listened to his two friends going at it, knowing fully this way their way of showing they all cared for each other.

***

Autumn days started getting shorter and a little bit colder.

But Yugi did not mind, he enjoyed the milder weather and the warm colours that dressed up the trees. He had taken out his favourite jean jacket, paired it up with a thick flannel and a knitted scarf. He balanced his backpack on one shoulder while he was going through coloured note cards filled with Physics formulas. He muttered them under his breath as he made his way to the almost empty school.

He had taken it upon himself to arrive earlier on certain mornings to use the quietness and stillness of the school to review some notions, and also to come and shoot some hoops without anyone looking at him or expecting some perfection out of him. He liked it, the silent hallways and the eerie feeling he got from the usual busy building now voided by most people.

He was grateful he had tied up his hair this morning, and even used a few pins to hold his more messy bangs, when he was greeted by a gust of wind created by the change of pressure between the inside and outside of the building. The coach kept telling him he could do with a simpler hairdo, but Yugi quite liked his eclectic hair colour and cut.

He entered the large hall with rows of lockers without even glancing around, his eyes scanning his notes, his body on automatic pilot heading towards his own locker. His converse covered feet barely made a sound against the tiled concrete until they actually stumbled upon something that was not supposed to be on the ground.

Actually someone.

He held onto his note cards and tried not to sprawl on the floor, his foot catching into the legs of another student sitting there, not quite in the middle of the aisle, but leisurely there, his back against his locker, his bag resting next to him. Yugi took a step back, catching his balance, happily noticing he had not made a complete fool out of himself by falling.

He did not recognize the other student, although it was quite strange how they shared a somewhat similar hairstyle although scarlet tips escaped from the other’s ponytail whereas Yugi’s were violet. Garnets looked up at him through a pair of large black plastic rimmed glasses. The teenager had darker skin, a huge pair of headphones of his head, at least three different necklaces handing in different lengths around his neck, a plethora of leather bracelets of various width around both his wrists and a black t-shirt on which Yugi recognized the red and white mushroom from Mario Bros. He had pulled up his legs closer to himself right after Yugi had bumped into them.

His hand reached for his headphones when he noticed Yugi not moving at all. He opened up his mouth, but Yugi was quicker into jumping in with an apology. “I’m so sorry! I was so focused on just getting to my locker, I forgot to look down!”

Headphones were placed around a neck as the other student smiled up shyly at him. Music notes filled up the air, the volume probably much too loud for hearing health. A deep baritone answered Yugi’s apology. “No worries, I get it. People usually don’t sit on the ground like that.”

Yugi wanted to reply something witty, but instead he just went with the words on the tip of his tongue. “Then why do you?”

The sitting student looked taken aback by such a forward question and blinked before a grin appeared on his lips. “I guess I’m not people?” he replied.

“Oh.”

Yugi was so used to most people around him either avoiding his very forward questions, or simply answering something smart or impersonal, that he did not really know what to say after that. It was not anything particularly poetic, but to Yugi’s ears, it sounded lyrical. Different. Nice. He found himself wanting to say something else, but instead, his ears peaked up at familiar notes coming from the headphones around the other’s neck.

He knew that song. Heck, he listened to it more times than he would ever admit it. It was somewhat of an earworm and he found himself filling up the blanks in his ears with the lyrics he knew by heart. For a quick second, he had a flashback of himself sitting on the floor of his bedroom, his own pair of earbuds stuck in his ears, humming the melody or even screaming the lyrics at times, his mother shouting from below for him to quiet down.

He shook his head, coming back to the moment. He still felt like he wanted to say something so he did. “I… I like that song.”

The grin on the other’s face turned into a soft smile as he acknowledged the comment. “Thanks.”

Without another word, but a simple nod, Yugi kept on walking towards his locker as the other just put his headphones back on. From the corner of his eyes, Yugi caught sight of something in the tanned hands, something he also recognized quite well. It was somewhat rare to see people bringing this device along with them. Yugi had mostly used his on trips or played in his bedroom where he did not possess a tv or a gaming console, and he briefly wondered for a second why he never took it out of his house casually like the other had done.

The Gameboy gleamed, its Advance form clear from its previous counterpart, and Yugi had an instant want to sit next to the other and look at the game he was playing. With school and the basketball team, he did not have as much time as before to play videogames and he missed it. He had his console on which he would play from time to time, but that required the TV to be unoccupied by another other member in his household, and his grandfather was hooked on his murder mystery shows and his mom could not live without her soap operas.

He tried to not look too much in fear the other student would catch him staring, but his curiosity grew second by second and he just needed to know what he was so invested in, sitting there in the locker aisle, blasting music in his ears and playing at such an early hour in the morning. He got mesmerized at one point just by the sheer look of concentration, the way the fingers pressed in rhythm on the buttons and the tiniest hint of tongue poking between lips. Then a proud smirk appeared and he swore he could see the victory in the cringe of eyebrows above those red eyes.

Yugi closed his locker after emptying the content of his bag he would not need for the morning, and paused for a second. He could walk around the other end of the aisle to the staircase that led up to the classes, or the corridor that would take him straight to the gymnasium... or he could walk past the other student again and maybe satisfy his curiosity and take a detour towards his intended destination. But would the other think he was observing him purposely or something?

Screw this, he was doing it. After all, it was just a simple walk by, a quick glance, and then he would probably not see the other student anymore in the flow of teenagers down in the corridors of their school. High school had that going for you sometimes, a place filled with faces that could not even remember each other as they passed in the hallways. He took a few assured steps and tried not to slow down too much as he arrived right in front of the other… and he almost stumbled again as his eyes fell upon a familiar name and logo on the cartridge poking from the top of the Gameboy. Right there, he could swore his heart skipped a short beat.

The beat must have been loud because the other student raised his eyes as he noticed Yugi in front of him again, and to avoid an awkward encounter yet for a second time this morning with the same individual, Yugi simply raised his hand in a short and courteous wave before hurrying down the aisle. He saw the quick wave in reply just before he turned the corner and tried to slam as silently as he could against the metal of the locker row.

It was one thing to know that there were other people that enjoyed video games as much as he did in this school, but it was another totally to know that others could enjoy the same games as him so much that they would even bring their gaming console to school and indulge in this simple pleasure anywhere. Yugi shook his head. This was ridiculous; he was getting excited about something so trivial that it even brought a flush of embarrassment across his cheeks. He needed to get a hold of himself.

He jogged to the gym, took his flannel off and, without changing into his gym clothes, grabbed a ball and managed to calm his nerves by shooting a few hoops. It was stupid to get that excited about something so simple, but it was also something he never talked about with Jou or Honda. He knew Jou enjoyed the occasional video game session, but he was much more into fighting or shooting games. Yugi did like them too, but not as much as strategic or casual ones like the one the other student had been playing. It was pure coincidence that both the game and the music were things that he really liked, just sheer dumb luck he had stumbled upon that guy on this cool autumn morning.

His mind even went back to this plain encounter to cover his boredom during his History class, the only one he had not been able to cram into a summer semester to avoid having to suffer through it all year long. He had been able to do this with most of his Social Sciences classes; he wanted to like these topics, but he just could not find any enjoyment in politics, history and sociology. He found Ancient History fascinating, but it was very scarcely mentioned in high school lessons, it seems.

Basketball practice rolled around, Jou and Honda teased him again about his studying habit as he pulled out his keynote cards from this morning to review certain notions before the quiz they had on Friday. As both of his friends laughed in the background, he tried to focus on the numbers and laws he had to memorize and apply for the test. Once on the field, he led his thoughts back into the sport, just enjoying the way his body fed on endorphins.

That night, after dinner and homework and shower and everything else, he opened up the top drawer of his desk and pulled out the case containing his own Gameboy. He set the familiar little cartridge in the slot and settled into bed, propping pillows behind his back to find a comfortable gaming position. The familiar jingle of Pokémon filled in the room and he smiled brightly as he loaded up his saved game after weeks of absence.

***

“Atem, could I talk to you for a quick second?”

He would have loved to say no, he did not want to talk about it. He knew what the teacher wanted to talk about and he actually wanted to forget all about it as soon as he could. However, it was not like him to avoid his teachers or to be disrespectful to them. And although he hated the topic she was teaching, Miss Allie was actually a very decent human being. She was actually an intern that had taken over the class from their professor the last few weeks. Atem would never voice it out loud, but she did a better job at teaching than he did.

He gave a rapid nod to Mana who was standing by the door, letting her know he would join her and their friends right after his conversation. She sent an encouraging smile her way and left, leaving him alone with the teacher who looked up from her seated position at her desk.

“You’re usually better than that, no?” the woman prompted without any delay.

Atem sighed and scratched the back on his neck nervously. “Better at hiding the fact that I suck at Physics?”

The intern smiled warmly. “However funny that might sound, that’s not what I meant.” She picked up a few stacks of paper on the desk and stood up. “I had remedial class last week and you did not show up like you did previously when you had trouble understanding a lesson.”

Atem shuffled on his feet and pushed back his glasses up his nose. “Yeah, I had a rehearsal that same day.”

She grabbed a large leather messenger bag and headed towards the open door, casting him a glance. “You should have told me. I would have arranged something.”

The student felt bad somehow. He knew he could have, but this certain topic made him feel so dumb sometimes. He never had trouble getting great grades in any topics, but Physics was getting the best of him and it just brought forth a sentiment of failure he tried to avoid at all cost. “Thanks, but you don’t have to do that just for me.”

She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder and squeezed for barely a second before letting go. “I don’t have to, yes. But I could.”

Atem walked out of the class and she closed and locked behind them. He nodded and smiled, although a bit weakly. “Thanks, I’ll be sure to come by next time.”

She gave him one last smile before hurrying down the corridor. Atem watched as she walked away for a second before turning and heading towards the staircase that would lead him downstairs to the lockers.

There were a few students lingering here and there as usual as he dropped his books inside his own space and grabbed his hooded jacket and beanie, setting his headphones around his neck again. He opened up the door to the courtyard where Marik was wrapped up from behind in Bakura’s arms, a lit cigarette in hand. They were awkwardly sharing a scarf, which Atem found both ridiculous and cute. Mana was leaning against the wall close to them, talking to Mahad with excitement. Atem smiled at the picture for a moment before joining them.

“I hate Physics,” he opened up without further ado.

The white-haired teenager added, “Don’t we all?” before he grabbed the cigarette from Marik to take a drag.

“I don’t,” his companion replied shrugging.

Mana rolled her eyes and huffed. “Well, that’s because you’re good at it, unlike the rest of us.”

The blonde stuck his tongue at her. “Remind me again why I tolerate you?”

She pushed off the wall, pointing an accusatory finger his way. “Because I tolerate this freezing temperature just so you can wreck your precious health!”

The other snickered back at her. “It helps calm me down.”

“I can think of other ways to calm you down,” Bakura implied dropping a slow kiss on his cheeks.

“Stop it!” Mana reacted by hiding her face in her hands. “My poor virgin ears and eyes can’t take so much sexiness. Atem, help me!” she said as she dodged to hide behind him.

Atem just reached for the volume button on his headphones and pumped up the music just a little bit louder. “Sorry, I can’t hear you over the sound of all the heck I give about this.”

His words may have been casual and smooth, but his nerves were anything but. The notes coming from his headphones helped calm his rapidly beating heart and he hoped that the red on his cheeks could be mistaken for a reaction to the cold. He tried avoiding the topic of relationships all together, he never knew what to add to it all. Marik had often tried to get more information about his reluctance to open up about it, but Atem has always managed to weasel out of such conversation.

Mana had told him many times that he could tell them anything, but he did not want to breach this topic, not when he did not really know where he stood about relationships all together. He was busy and he liked his solitude. He liked his books and his music mixes and his video games and school altogether, as well as his acting classes and casual hang-outs with his little group of friends. He was happy with just that… or that’s what he liked to believe on most days.

But there were times where he would watch Mana look at a boy from the corner of her eyes, times where he would catch Marik dropping a soft kiss on Bakura’s temple as he loved to do, times where his eyes would land on intertwined hands of strangers in the corridor. And he wondered… wondered what it would be like to feel someone’s hand in his, wondered what it would be like to like someone, wondered what it would be like to be liked in return.

His fingers itched for something to grab onto and, momentarily, he could relate to Marik and Bakura’s bad habit, relinquishing the feeling of fingers twirling around a cigarette. He toyed with the cord of his headphones instead absentmindedly. He focused on the lyrics barely reaching his ears, although the background melody did, but he did not necessarily need to know them to hum them under his breath. His eyes were somewhat unfocused, his mind wandering between his classes and his current quests for Pokémon, cursing that he had forgotten his Gameboy that morning.

Then his eyes caught something and his focus came back. The conversation around him was still going on, with Mana teasing Marik once again, Bakura rolling his eyes and Mahad somewhat vaguely invested in what everyone was saying, but Atem was but a mere bystander as he muted all of them. He watched as a couple of students passed around a basketball, playing what seemed to be a friendly game. He could not begin to comprehend why anyone would willingly decide to play when the ground was covered with thin patches of ice and scattered powered snow from a couple of days ago.

December had barely rolled around, but winter had yet to set in, temperatures rising and dropping like a roller coaster ride. Today was brisk and crispy because of the wind and the lingering grey skies. The players were passing the ball, shooting hoops, and Atem realised they must have been from their school’s team from the way they played with coordination. He noticed one of the players was slightly shorter than the others and it made him smile, being on the shorter side himself. That player was fast on his feet though, and what he lacked in height, he made up for in speed.

The ball came back down from the hoop and caught into slippery feet, leaving the court and rolling almost like in slow motion towards Atem and his friends. As it reached his feet, he stayed frozen just staring at it for a second before bending and retrieving it. Almost in rhythm with the notes from his headphones, he heard a series of hurried steps coming his way. When he looked up, he found himself stunned by a pair of bright purple eyes. His mind tugged at him as he tried to remember when he had seen them before, but like a word stuck on the tip of his tongue, he could not put a moment on the déjà-vu feeling.

“Oh hey, we gotta stop meeting like this,” the short basketball player prompted.

Atem just blinked behind his glasses.

“I’m sorry?” he replied, trying to understand what the other boy meant.

The purple-eyed teenager scratched the back of his neck nervously before pointing at Atem’s neck. “I… I recognized your headphones and the glasses and all. I almost tripped on you back then, in the locker aisle?” he recalled.

Suddenly, Atem was back in that row of lockers, sitting on the cold tiles, music blasting in his ears and fingers actively trying to beat a Pokémon right before he was interrupted by someone stumbling in his legs. He remembered mentally cursing himself for choosing such a random spot to geek out alone, but he had done it countless times in the past without anyone being around that early. He remembered the teenager apologizing and their short exchange about his choice of music that day.

_“I… I like that song.”_

“Oh, right, I remember now,” Atem answered with a smile, basketball still in hand. “Lucky I’m standing this time.”

The player laughed lightly at the comment. “I’m usually not that clumsy, I swear.”

Atem unconsciously hesitated for a second before handing back the ball to the other student. “Oh good, because I am. I can trip on my own feet,” he added with a chuckle.

The ball had barely left his fingers that the loud familiar jingle of the school bell resonated all around them. Atem’s eyes flickered to the group of players gathering their things and high-fiving each other and gave a polite and light nod of head towards the one that was still standing in front of him. This one smiled almost shyly back and left without another word. The Egyptian went back to paying attention to his group of friends who had suddenly become very quiet.

He replaced the strap of his backpack and frowned as he caught his friends’ bewildered looks. “What?”

Mahad raised an eyebrow back at him as he opened up the heavy metal door that led back inside. “What just happened?”

“I think we may have witnessed a wild Atem getting approached by a trainer,” Mana replied slyly as she rubbed her hands together, although Atem could not be sure whether it was from the cold or from excitement, opting most probably for a combination of both.

He shook his head as he entered the building, happily feeling the draft of warmer air hitting him right away. “You guys are terrible,” he countered.

He was engulfed suddenly from behind by Marik who settled his chin on his shoulder. “Yet, you still hang with us!”

Atem rolled his eyes as he disengaged from his friend and turned back to face him, sticking his tongue out. “I’m masochistic, my zodiac sign says so.”

Bakura nudged him on the shoulder playfully. He may have been the newest addition to their crew, but somehow he fitted almost naturally. And Atem wanted him to feel welcome for the sake of Marik who had finally managed to muster the courage to ask him out. “Since when do you believe in that shit?” the white haired teen inquired with a devious smirk.

Atem opened up his locker to grab a few manuals for the rest of the afternoon as he answered. “Since it saves me from situations like this.”

Mana laughed next to him as she grabbed Mahad’s arm and dragged him away towards their locker, the tall brunet following with a sigh. Sometimes, Atem could not believe they were actually twins. He shook his head before catching sight of someone at the end of the hallway, heading in the adjacent row of lockers.

The slightly younger teenager took off his beanie and retied his hair in a messy ponytail, purple tips escaping from the elastic. He peeled off his coat, revealing a black and white hooded vest, but what really commanded Atem’s attention was the bright smile he wore on his face. Right under those bright purple eyes that had met his a few minutes ago.

He imagined what it would be like to just walk up to the other again, to ask him about his musical preference, just to make small talk. Both of their exchanges had been very short, but had somehow left him wanting more. He had been friends with his gang for years, and had never felt the need for more, but now, it was creeping up on him.

To know someone else.

To share his music with someone else.

To catch another glimpse of those kind purple eyes.

Instead of acting on that impulse, he hitched his headphones back on the top of his head, letting the music take him away once more as he walked away to his next class, hitching to glance back once more, but not doing it.


	2. Winter

It became somewhat of a comforting tradition to take out his Gameboy and play every evening before tapping out for the night. Sometimes, he would even take a shorter shower to dedicate more time to it after study sessions or basketball practices. His grandfather had commented on his new habit, saying he had not seen Yugi that invested in a videogame for quite a while.

Yugi ended up even digging out his old Pokémon guidebook, something he had gotten while playing the very first Pokémon game he had owned. He was currently very into the revamped version, so the creatures were basically the same, although the storyline had been altered.

All the while, there was often punk rock music playing in the background very softly from the stereo. He would usually open it up on the same radio channel due to his lack of purchase of more recent CDs. Besides, he liked the variety and the randomness of it all. Sometimes, he would even settle in the living room to do his homework and turn on the TV to MuchMusic to get his fix of videos too.

And, although he would not even admit it to himself, his heart rate would pick up whenever he heard one song in particular. Not that it played that often, but when it did, he would pump up the volume a little more, remember that first awkward encounter with another closeted gamer teen. Not that the second encounter had been any better, although they had exchanged more words that time.

But nothing… real.

Just banalities.

He wondered if that was all this was ever going to be.

A ball hit him straight on the head and he lost his balance, tumbling to the ground. Jou was by his side in seconds. The gym was mostly empty, the both of them having stayed behind to just play a friendly one-on-one game after practice.

The blonde sat down next to him. “Hey there buddy! You okay? I really thought you were going to catch this!”

Yugi sighed loudly before falling backwards to lay on the gymnasium floor, his forearm coming to cover his eyes. “I’m sorry, I got lost in my head for a moment.”

He heard Jou shuffle next to him and felt his presence as the other scooted closer. “Yeah, you seem to do that a lot these days. Do I have to be worried?”

Yugi shook his head, his hair brushing against the varnished floor. “No, it’s nothing. Like really, it’s ‘nothing’.”

Jou chuckled. “You’re a very bad liar, you know that?”

Yugi pulled his arm away and tried glaring at him as menacingly as he could. “I have a great poker face.”

His friend waved his hands in defense. “Oh you do, I never said anything about that.” Then he mimicked a mouth opening and closing with his hand. “But when you start talking, it all goes down the drain.”

Yugi rolled his eyes, pulling his knees to his chest, appreciating the stretch that was currently distracting him from his swirling thoughts. “I should learn to shut up.”

Jou waved it off again with a shrug. “Nah, you’re good. I get it. You don’t wanna talk about it.”

Yugi sat up quickly and whirled around so he was facing Jou. He wrapped his arms loosely around his knees. “No, that’s not what I meant. But it’s really ‘nothing’ and I’m fussing over it like a stupid kid.”

The other basketball player looked at him with an honest and caring smirk. “Yug, it ain’t nothing if it’s bugging you that much.” He ruffled his hair, making the shorter teenager groan. “What is it? Grades, coach is on your case, what?”

“It’s…” Yugi started, but he did not know really what to say, how to voice what he considered a childish concern. “… someone I guess.”

Jou snickered and swapped at Yugi’s knee. “Who’s the lucky one that caught your eye?”

The purple-haired boy shook his head lightly and casted his eyes down. “It’s not like that. I just… want to talk to him.”

Jou's voice was filled with bluntness. “So why don’t you?”

Yugi just wanted to bang his head against a wall. Because that was the solution indeed, just talk to the other guy, say hi formally, introduce himself, open up the conversation with the topic of music or video games, anything really. Humans talk to each other on a daily basis, so why could he not just get the words out, or even simply just walk to the other the next time he saw him and talk?

Because he felt completely awkward when it came to the idea of making friends with a stranger he had met purely randomly.

Yugi became suddenly very interested in his shoelaces, idly playing with them. “I don’t know, I just don’t know how to… start this up, you know.”

When he looked back up, Jou was not looking at him like he was some teenage disaster waiting to happen like he had thought he would. Instead, the other was smiling at him softly. “Are you telling me you wanna make friends with someone but you don’t know how?”

“I guess?” Yugi supplied.

Jou reached for the other’s face and placed both hands on his cheeks, pulling him closer. “Well, just say the first thing that comes to mind the next time you see him.” He let go of his face in favour of grabbing him tightly in a bear hug. “Heck Yug, the person who doesn’t wanna be friends with you is an idiot.”

Yugi laughed at the comment and felt lighter from sharing his confusion with his friend. They picked themselves up from the floor and Jou checked his watch for the time. The sheer look of panic on his face made Yugi laugh even harder when he watched Jou just rush, grabbing his belongings on the bench and shouting some excuses to meet up with his sister and being so very late as he ran out of the gymnasium.

Yugi set the ball back on the rack and waved to the coach still in his office goodbye. He grabbed his own bag and headed back to his locker where he had left his coat, toque and mittens. He proceeded to get dressed and pack his manuals inside his backpack. He placed the padlock back on his locker and walked towards the exit. He rounded the end of the aisle and instantly bumped into someone else coming around too, and almost fell backwards but a hand grabbed one of his backpack straps and held him straight up.

A deep baritone greeted him. “You’re right, we gotta stop meeting like this.”

Yugi’s eyes immediately snapped to the owner of that voice and locked in with crimson orbs. “Oh hey! It’s you!” he let out without thinking.

The other let go of the strap and smiled gently. “It’s me, yeah.” He was dressed for the outdoors too, probably leaving just like Yugi was, and his large glasses were perched on his nose like every single other time.

Yugi wanted to say something clever, anything to keep the conversation going, but words were failing him right now. “I’m sorry, I’m just… yeah,” he mumbled.

The geeky teen chuckled nervously. “Maybe my clumsiness is rubbing off on you.”

Yugi agitated his hands vigorously in front of him. “No, no! I’m just scatterbrained. Don’t mind me.”

The other nodded and there was an awkward pause between them, and Yugi felt it acutely. The teenager in front of him shuffled on his feet before sliding to the side and skirting around him, and Yugi downed his eyes in defeat. And right there, from the pocket of that black parka, poked out the Gameboy with a previous version of the game he himself had been playing for the past few weeks.

_ The first thing that comes to mind… _

The words were out of his mouth instantly. “What’s your starter?”

The other teen stopped dead in his tracks and whirled around. “What?” he replied.

Yugi swallowed and turned to face him too. “Which starter did you choose? Mudkip, Treecko or Torchic?”

Crimson eyes enlarged to the size of saucers and eyebrows raised high. “You know Pokémon?”

Yugi felt his cheeks heat up in excitement. He was really doing this! “I don’t just know it, I play it. It’s one of my favourite games,” he retorted happily.

The other took a step back towards him with a bright smile on his lips. “Me too! I played all of the generations so far, but Hoenn is really where my heart’s at.”

Yugi started gesturing eagerly like a kid. “I’m playing LeafGreen right now with a Bulbasaur as my starter.”

His conversation partner whistled in admiration. “Oh the original grass-type! Bold choice! Most people would go for Charmander,” he said with a quizzically raised eyebrow.

The purple-eyed boy rolled his eyes and sighed. “That’s because most people want instant power instead of growing prowess.”

He watched as a hand came to rest against the other’s chest while he nodded his agreement. “Wise words indeed,” he complimented.

Yugi pointed a playful finger towards him. “You still haven’t answered my question, though.”

A solemn look painted itself on the other’s features. “Well, it was a really difficult decision, but in the end, Treecko won over Mudkip,” he finished with a soft wink.

Yugi pumped his fist up in the air. “Yes! Power to the leaf-types!”

The scarlet-eyed teenager could not help but agree once again. “Right? The underdogs of starters!”

And just like that, Yugi suddenly realised how easy this had been, to just talk with the other about such a simple subject, but a subject they both loved. He liked it, this laid-back conversation between them. The smile that appeared on his face threatened to split his chapped lips. “I’m… I’m Yugi, by the way.”

His smile was mirrored back at him as a hand was extended towards him. “Atem.”

The mitten cladding Atem’s hand could not prevent an unmistakable heat from seeping inside him and warm him up all over, from his toes to the very tip of his nose. He could blame the cold for the change of tint in his cheek if asked, but he knew that would be a lie.

***

Atem’s routine had started shifting, but only slightly.

He still pondered over which geeky t-shirt he felt like wearing in the morning.

He still slapped on too many necklaces and bracelets on his neck and wrists.

He still wiped his glasses with the edge of his shirt.

He still struggled at Physics.

But there was something that definitely changed.

It happened usually once a day, and sometimes more if the timing was right. It did not always happen at the same time, but whenever it did, it brought a smile to his face and a skipped beat to his heart. Yet, it was so simple and casual.

A little wave of hand and a smile his way.

Both of which he returned every single time.

Yugi had suddenly just appeared in his routine and was not just a one-time pop-up anymore. Atem found himself glancing towards the end of the other locker row whenever he passed it, just to see if he could spot the purple spikes, the easiest thing to spot about the other short teenager. Their conversation over their shared love of Pokémon had replayed itself in his mind over and over again, and he was left wanting more. It had been nice to talk to the other, nice to share something he liked so much. His other friends knew he liked video games, but none of them were actually as much into them as he was. And yet, this not-so-stranger-anymore had came up to him and talked to him about it.

It had felt thrilling and exciting and nice. So nice.

He wanted to know more about Yugi, but he did not quite know where or how to start. He was not the type to search for information, he preferred asking about it, but it seemed very hard to find a moment with this new acquaintance of his. He had looked around his friends’ classes, noticing that the other was absent from all of them, making him think he was probably younger than him, but not that much since their lockers were not that far away, and the school usually put students in special order around the locker aisles. He had often seen him wearing a hoodie with the school basketball team logo, and from the way he had seen him play the field in the courtyard the other day, he could guess that Yugi was on their school’s team.

A geeky jock, now that was not something Atem had seen often. It made him smile even more that the other had actually opened up to him and reached out like he had done. Atem had never been one for cliques and their limitations, but unfortunately, this was high school, so everyone else but him seemed to be all about them.

If asked, he could not even tell in which category he would fall into. He dressed like a mix between a punk and a geek with his witty t-shirts and accessories clashing with one another. He was into books and learning, which categorized him as a nerd for sure, especially with his grades, his attention to his schoolwork and his good relationships with most of his teachers. And he was into acting and the likes, which could qualify him as a theater kid. He quite liked not fitting in some days, although it did make it hard to socialize outside of his small group of friends.

Which is why it somewhat felt so special that someone had noticed him while he had made it his daily job to not get noticed at all.

He was walking down the corridor towards his French class, when he was suddenly grabbed by the arm, and he instantly knew who was clutching at him like that.

“Good morning, sunshine!” a perky voice sounded right next to his ear.

He was often reminded why he had started drinking coffee at the beginning of senior year when he felt the perkiness of his other best friend. “Good morning to you too, Marik.”

Marik still had his arm looped around his, a bright smile on his face. “How’s the play going?” His eyes drifted to the novel Atem was currently holding. “Oi, is that already another new book?”

Atem kept his eyes on the page, trying to get another few lines of words in, the story once again sweeping him in. “The play’s going well, and don’t act so surprised about the book.”

Marik had learned over the years never to try to take a book away from Atem, or even try to close it as he was reading it. Atem had learned the respectful thing to do when someone was talking to you, well at least a friend, was to close the book without being asked to. He did so and smiled at his best friend.

“I will never not act surprised at your uncanny ability to read so much in so little time,” Marik commented as they walked down the corridor together.

Atem rolled his eyes playfully. “And I will never understand your uncanny ability at memorizing all the symbols of the periodic table.”

His friend huffed back at him. “Like you don’t know them as well.”

The other chuckled. “I do, but I need to review them every week, unlike you.”

At that, Marik flipped his hair with flair. “I’ve got to have something going for me except my good looks.”

Atem laughed and almost as if on cue, he heard another bright laugh coming from another gathering of students across the corridor as both groups passed next to each other. He spotted a familiar hairstyle, peaked with purple, and his eyes met with an equally coloured set of eyes. His lips automatically turned into a smile and, automatically, his free hand raised to return the wave that was immediately sent his way. He let out a small, but audible ‘hey’ as Yugi promptly greeted him back. They did not stop to chat, both heading towards their own lesson, but that little interaction was enough for Atem to feel like, for a second, it had been just the two of them walking down that corridor and meeting right there in the middle.

The moment was over too soon as both sets of eyes went back to watching where they were going, and Marik opened up his mouth the second Atem was back in their own current reality. “So who’s that guy?”

Atem did not want to start explaining his budding exchange with Yugi, because honestly, he could not quite make out what they meant to him, and hence to the other, just yet. It was all so very new… and maybe even a bit confusing. “Just some guy I’ve bumped into a few times,” he replied.

Marik raised a quizzical eyebrow as he let go of Atem’s arm to make sure he could look the other in the eye directly. “You do realise that he’s a jock, right?” he asked.

And there it was again, the annoying labeling, the one that plagued his high school experience and his mind although he tried very hard to avoid it. He wanted to avoid the specific topic, but knew deep down that Marik had a point, whether he wanted it to be a real point or not. “Should I care about that?” he mumbled as he nervously fidgeted with the cord of his headphones.

Marik stopped right next to a door, the one behind which Atem’s next class was. He laid against the wall and crossed his arms, a smirk on his lips. “Well, no, but usually jocks avoid us like the plague. We’re bad for their image,” the blonde commented.

Atem let out a short burst of laugh and smirked right back. “Because we’re smart and sassy?”

The other clicked his tongue. “That, and because we can make their mothers swallow their tongues or something.”

The tricoloured hair teen rolled his eyes. “I have no intention of meeting his mother.”

“You say that now, just give it time. You know, right on the morning after-” Marik started, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Atem flushed furiously at the implication. “Get your mind out of the gutter. I barely know his name.”

He did not even want to think about that. Heck, he was just happy about their little waves in corridors. He would like to have other exchanges with Yugi, but that was it.

Marik may have been comfortable in his own skin and with his own sexuality, but Atem was far from being remotely at ease with any of that. He had barely held hands and exchanged a chaste kiss with someone… not that he did not want to do it again, or even something more eventually. He just always felt he would know when the right moment arrived and it had yet to happen. He had some romantic notion about all of that, and never felt like exposing himself to his friends that much. He liked to keep that to himself, to think about it warmly and to hold onto that notion like someone held onto a comforting plush.

Marik smiled at him, and this time, it was softer. He may joke often, but he knew not to push Atem’s buttons about certain things, and he would always notice his discomfort and change the direction of their conversation if needed. He bopped him on the nose, much to Atem’s annoyance. “Yet you’re waving back at him and smiling like a grade schooler.”

Atem rubbed his nose, the blush still very apparent on his cheeks. “He’s nice, okay? Could you just take it and leave it?”

His friend suddenly grabbed him by the arm again and pulled him close to him, his cheek coming to rub with his. “As long as you don’t start wearing his jersey…”

Atem did not shy away from the affectionate gesture, but he did flush a bit brighter. “You’re such an idiot.”

The first bell signaling the end of the break between lessons rang loudly in the corridor and Marik left him by the door, jogging to his own class, blowing Atem a kiss as he turned back. Atem shook his head and sighed, but his lips tugged into a smile. He was lucky he had great friends like Marik and Mana, truly.

He entered the classroom and greeted the teacher before taking his seat, trying to focus on his lesson, but once again getting lost in his own thoughts. It had been two weeks since he and Yugi had talked about videogames and Pokémon, just a little bit after Christmas break. They had seen each other everyday, waved and smiled, but that was it. Atem was not the most forward type of person, but he knew that if he wanted to ever talk to the other again, he may have to reach out…

And that somewhat scared him.

That evening, he packed his school bag the same way he did every night, but he added two other things, a timid smile on his face as he did. Tomorrow, he would walk up to Yugi when he saw him and would greet him. He would make the first move, just like Yugi had done the other time. It was his turn to show his hand, and he was willing to do so.

The next morning was also like every other one. Atem had walked into the school and shed his winter coat and toque, stored them inside his locker and switched the books he needed for the classes he had before lunch. His hands grabbed an unmarked cd case as well as his copy of Pokémon Ruby.

Yugi had told him he was currently into LeafGreen, and he himself was playing Emerald. Yugi had casually mentioned he had lost his own Sapphire cartridge a while ago, and Atem had thought it a good idea to lend him his own sister game in case the purple haired teen would want to give it another go.

Now the cd case… that was another thing. Atem loved making mixes, he rarely listened to a specific group album. He would find tunes here and there on the Internet and make his own playlists, giving them weird, but thoughtful names because he could. This particular one contained the song he had been listening to that one time Yugi had mentioned he liked it. Atem may not have always been that good with words, probably shy about them most of the time, but his playlist spoke for himself. He was a ‘lyrics’ guy, although beats also spoke volumes to him too.

He held both items tightly in his hands and walked the good couple of steps that separated him from Yugi’s locker. His heart almost skipped a beat when he saw the other was already there, unpacking his belongings. He stopped and took a deep breath before taking another step, then another. At that moment, Yugi’s eyes lifted up to meet his, as if to check if Atem had been at his locker too. The smile that lit up his face was brighter than the morning sun and he raised his hand in greeting. Atem raised a hand back and was about to close the distance between them when Yugi was caught in a headlock by a tall blonde, coming in with a brunet that had the weirdest hairstyle Atem had ever seen, after his and Yugi’s of course.

Yugi’s attention shifted from him to them, and Atem deadpanned. He watched as the three boys, all wearing the school’s basketball team logo on different items of clothing, chatted admittedly and laughed. His fingers tightened around the cd and game cartridge, and he suddenly felt so stupid.

Yugi already had his own group of friends, Atem was just the bystander that happened to stumble upon him a few times. They barely knew each other’s names, and had talked about their gaming experience, but that was it. Nothing more, nothing less. And there he was, thinking this could have maybe become something more… where he clearly was way out of his league. The labels slapped him right across the face once again, the stupid high school stereotypes he tried to avoid every single minute of his life coming to show him his rightful place in the teenage hierarchy.

He swallowed with difficulty as he passed by Yugi and his friends, dropping his hands to his side in defeat. He knew he should not have, but he still glanced back only for a second as he made his way down the aisle. Purple met crimson, and Yugi’s smile faltered right there. A flash of hesitation and confusion sparked across his amethyst eyes, but Atem did not linger any longer as he walked out of the locker hall, his heart filling with chagrin instead of hope, his steps heavier than they had been when he had left home that morning.

***

Yugi looked outside the large windows, lost in the flurry of snowflakes that fell from the sky in abundance. The teacher at the front of the class was trying to do her best at entertaining students about some historical event that Yugi could not care less at the moment. The discussion around him seemed lively enough, but his own whirlwind of thoughts overtook anything else.

Atem had been ghosting him for the past weeks, Yugi was sure of it now.

At first, it seemed circumstantial, almost like nothing really. It had started that morning when he was sure that the other would actually walk up to him and strike a conversation, and his heart had skipped a beat when the other had started walking towards him, not just passing by. The words had started swimming in his mind about what he could say first, what type of greeting he could use, or if he should use a greeting at all. He had been dying to talk to Atem again, about anything. He had even brought his Gameboy to school a few days just in case they could catch each other, but things never seemed to align for it to happen.

And it was about to happen now, and he was mentally cursing himself for leaving his game console on his desk at home that morning, and he was probably smiling a bit too hard, and he should…

Jou and Honda had appeared out of nowhere, shifting his focus from Atem to them. Faith must have been laughing really hard at that moment for things to rearrange themselves against his will like that. He tried to tell his friends he would meet up with them for lunch practice, that he had something to do before classes started, but they were having none of it.

Suddenly, as if someone had opened one of the school doors and let in a breeze, a shiver ran down his spine and his eyes immediately searched for Atem’s in the crowded hallway and, when they did find them, something was clearly amiss. Atem’s smile had disappeared and his usually open red eyes were distant and hazy, and they shifted away from his hastily as he walked away from Yugi and his friends.

Yugi had felt his heart fall down to the bottom of his converse shoes in a thud.

The daily waves had turned almost painful after that, if they happened at all. Yugi would search for Atem at his locker in the morning, often catching his retreating back instead of his eyes like he used to before. The passive smile the other wore never seemed to reach his eyes when they did meet, almost unwillingly.

January had passed in a blur, and February was already passed the halfway mark. Yugi had never felt the weight of winter as bad as he did this year. The snow outside did little to soothe his uneasiness at what he felt like could have been something between Atem and him. Every other day that passed by with the other drifting away from him felt more horrible than the previous. He barely registered when three other students all came to sit around his desk to prepare for a team presentation that was due in two weeks from now. Yugi had done his part, but they all agreed that they should regroup after school tonight to finish putting everything together and be ready in time. Yugi agreed with a smile plastered on his face; he may have hated the topic, but he would do his very best to make his work partners proud.

The day and teamwork sessions wrapped up, and the sky had darkened outside, but the flakes were still falling heavily when he managed to step outside. He mentally thanked his mother for letting him borrow the car, which in the end, was mostly his since she usually walked to work. He did not want to think about the prospect of either walking home or waiting for a bus that would inevitably be late or no show even in this weather. He pulled the collar of his jacket tighter and walked towards the parking lot when he caught sight of a lone individual waiting inside the bus stop cabin. He would have shrugged it off had he not recognized the large headphones perched on the black beanie, and the tartan backpack covered with pins and patches.

Suddenly, he did not care about the weather. He did not care about dinner waiting for him at home. He did not care about the math homework that was due tomorrow. He did not care about anything but closing the distance between him and the bus stop. He did not even know what he was going to say, or if the other was even going to listen to him, but if this was not Faith showing him a sign, he did not know what it was.

Atem did not hear him approach, and Yugi did not want to think about it, but he still thought that this was a good thing since it prevented the other from maybe running away from him again. He shuffled nervously outside the cabin before taking a deep breath and coming to a standing position right in front of the other teen, firmly planting his feet in the snow, his eyes dead serious looking at a surprised Atem that almost took a step back from the closeness between them.

Instead, his mitten-clad hand came up to the headphones and pulled them down slowly, but surely. His eyes searched around as if looking if they was just the two of them here. He reached behind and pulled his backpack to his front, pulling out his cd player and stopping his music before replacing it back into his bag. His crimson eyes seemed unsure of what was currently happening and it tugged at Yugi’s heartstrings that Atem could feel any sort of discomfort in his presence.

So he dived in.

“Hey, what are you doing out here?” he asked casually.

Atem just blinked back at him. “You mean what am I doing at the bus stop waiting for a bus?”

Yugi chuckled at his bluntness and rolled his eyes playfully. “No, I mean this late at a bus stop while there’s a blizzard out here.”

The timid smile that appeared on Atem’s lips was everything to Yugi right here and there. “Says the guy who is also still at school this late.”

He offered a smile back. “I had a team project meet. What’s your excuse?”

The other seemed to hesitate a moment before offering his answer. “I had a rehearsal for a play.”

Yugi’s eyes enlarged, showing his enthusiasm at such a thing. “You act? That is so cool!” he exclaimed, probably a little too loudly, but the slight blush that appeared across Atem’s nose and cheeks was totally worth it.

Atem cleared his throat and scratched the back of his neck, his eyes shifting to the side in awkwardness. “We have very different definitions of cool, I think. I mean, you’re on the basketball team, now THAT is cool,” he insisted.

It was Yugi’s turn to blink because, in his mind, being on a sports team was anything but cool. To him, it was so ordinary to play a sport in comparison to being in a play. To him, Atem was the definition of cool, with his headphones and music, his cool t-shirts, his funky accessories and his pastimes. He was so normal and average standing next to the other, the way he pictured it.

The words were out of his mouth before he could actually think them. “Would you like a ride?”

Atem did not seem to understand the offer correctly. “I’m waiting for one right now.”

Yugi shook his head before cocking it to the side, another natural smile grazing his lips. “No, I mean, can I give you a ride?” he insisted. “Better than waiting for a bus that might never come in this snow.”

The other student replaced his beanie absentmindedly, his eyes still hesitant. “Are you sure?”

Right then, Yugi wanted to reach across and put his hand on the other’s shoulder, but he did not. It was enough that Atem was talking to him, and considering his offer, and he did not want to push his luck. “I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t.”

Atem followed him to his car and even helped swipe away some of the snow covering it with his mittens. Yugi unlocked the doors and both got inside to take refuge from the blizzard and the cold. However, as Yugi pulled the keys into the ignition and started the car, he stopped before he could put it into drive. The soft hum of the heater filled in the air, but there was something else heavy in there and he just needed to get it off his chest.

“Okay, there’s an elephant in the room, err car, that I think is taking too much space,” he spoke up.

Atem nodded unsure, his eyes focused in front of him. “Okay?”

Yugi did not want to beat around the bush. “You’ve been avoiding me, right?”

That got the other’s attention as he whipped his head to look at Yugi. He did not speak right away, but his tone was almost shy when he did. “Not necessarily.”

Yugi angled his body so he could focus his attention fully on Atem. “Why? Did I do something wrong?” he questioned.

Atem’s eyes spoke volumes as they enlarged and filled with something akin to regret. “No, I guess I just got in my head...” he started. “… and thought maybe I wanted something that you did not. I… I actually enjoy talking to you.”

Yugi’s heart skipped a beat at Atem’s confession. Atem had taken a step back from him because he thought Yugi did not want to be friends with him? The urge to reach over to the passenger seat and physically close the distance between them settled in his bones again, but he let it simmer underneath instead of acting upon it. “Well, I want these conversations too. I enjoy them very much and I think they should happen more often,” he replied with a soft smile.

It took what seemed like a long second for a smile to grace Atem’s lips, and Yugi felt like the whole darkened car had been lit up suddenly. “Okay,” the more assured answer came from the other.

“Okay,” Yugi mirrored before finally pulling the car into driving gear.

The ambiance in the car became much lighter after that, as if both boys realised that they did not need to hold back from just enjoying each other’s company. The first few words exchanged were mostly about catching up and comments on the weather they were currently facing, until a thought occurred to Yugi.

“I can’t believe I did not ask this yet but you’re a senior, right?” he prompted.

Atem chuckled while replacing his backpack on his knees. “What gave it away? The general jaded look on my face or the bags under my eyes?”

Yugi laughed, but shook his head. “No, the book in your bag actually. It’s on the Advanced Lit curriculum.”

The other seemed stunned at the mention. “How would you know that?” he asked.

Yugi just shrugged, his eyes always on the road. “I looked it up.” He took a deep breath. “I… I like books.”

He could hear the smile in Atem’s voice as he replied: “I like books too.”

Yugi sighed happily. Again, this felt so easy and natural. “I could tell, you often have your nose in one.”

From the corner of his eye, he could see the senior playing with the buckles on his bag nervously. “I like words, I think they’re pretty, I know this must sound weird.”

The purple haired teen let out a short burst of dry laugh. “Almost as weird as a jock playing Pokémon, enjoying books and taking all the science classes he could cram into his schedule.”

Atem shifted in his seat so he could look at Yugi while the latter drove. “How is that weird?” he questioned.

For a moment, Yugi himself wondered what had prompted his reply. Then he remembered all the comments he heard from his basketball teammates and others around the school, and he knew why. “Well, most people would find it weird.”

Atem pushed back his glasses on his nose and smiled, but almost more to himself than to Yugi. “I thought we already established that I wasn’t ‘people’, remember? Besides, labels are overrated,” he commented.

Yugi realised that, at the moment, he understood maybe why Atem had shied away from him. There they were, a jock and a punk-rocker, sitting next to each other in a car, nerding and geeking out together, the picture of the opposite of high school hierarchy. It was stupid, he knew, but he understood it. And he wanted to shatter that, especially if it meant being friends with the awesome person sitting next to him. “They are, aren’t they? So why are so many people still sticking them on others?”

Atem’s words resounded in his ears, and they made so much sense. “Because it makes them feel like they understand how the world works. It makes it easier for them.”

It was probably at this second precisely that he decided that, whatever happened, he would not let labels come between them, because it felt so good just to be with Atem, to talk with him. So simple and natural, that no one should dictate if it was okay or not. “Well, easy is overrated too. I’d rather take the perilous path.”

The way Atem replied held the same liberating energy. “Perilous, that’s a beautiful word.”

And, like sealing a promise, Yugi answered: “It is.”

The smile that appeared on Atem’s lips was even more beautiful than the word itself to Yugi. He only caught a minute glance of it, his eyes coming right back on the snowy road and the wipers creating a synchronous beat. He thought for a second about reaching to the volume knob and turning the music he had silenced this morning back on, but he did not. Music was not what his ears wanted to hear right now, what his mind needed to hear right now. Right now, he wanted more of Atem’s words spoken in that soft, but assured baritone. He wanted some of those chuckles that punctuated his sentences, more of that gentle sarcasm and easy banter he seemed keen on using.

So instead of filling the air between them with music, he filled it with words.

“Say, do you by any chance like alliterations?”

Atem gifted with more words, but also with a melodious laugh that made his heart soar.

“Do I ever, you interesting individual!”

And for a second, Yugi thought that even making the perfect pass and shoot at basketball could not compare to how he felt precisely at that moment.


	3. Spring - Bud

Spring rolled in, and like its known characteristic, it brought a blossoming of changes in Atem’s life, mostly all brought forth by Yugi’s brightening new presence in his life.

It was not just casual waves anymore. After that conversation in Yugi’s car, the shining and smiling teenager started appearing more regularly around his locker, like a fresh cup of coffee offered to him in the morning. At first, Atem had noticed him walking up to him in the morning instead of just motioning his greeting. There were short conversations, almost still shy although they had dropped some walls between themselves.

But as days grew longer, so did their exchanges. Atem finally handed his music mix to Yugi, this one requested much more the following day, and Atem was all too willing to indulge him. Another time, Yugi brought the first book of a series he enjoyed, wanting to share with the senior. Atem had almost blushed at that; none of his friends had ever brought him a novel, let alone one they had liked and thought he would like too. He was the only one of his friends to be in Advanced Literature, not because he had too, but because he wanted to.

They still kept mostly to their own group of friends at lunch and outside of school, but it was soothing and comforting to just have these mornings to themselves. One morning, Yugi arrived with two paper cups of steaming coffee, creamers and sugars spilling out of his coat pockets, bellowing himself in excuses about not knowing how Atem took his coffee.

“I’m surprised you even know I drink coffee…” Atem replied, motioning to stand up from his seat on the ground next to his locker to help the other.

Yugi shook his head as he handed him his beverage and sat down next to him. “I’ve noticed, usually every Monday and Friday, with the occasional off day, and today is Friday so… here!”

Atem could not help but blink, completely taken aback. The words were out of his mouth before he could fully think them. “You’ve noticed that?”

Yugi clearly did not see his inner turmoil as he rolled his eyes and chuckled lightly. “I’ll have you know I may be clumsy and lost in my own silly thoughts often, but I pay attention to things!”

Atem just kept his eyes on him, his expression still surprised by the other’s attention to details, details about him nonetheless. “No, I mean, you noticed the days that I drink coffee,” he countered softly.

When Yugi looked back at him, there was a slight panic in his face and voice. “Wait, I shouldn’t have? Maybe? I don’t know, help me out!” he replied, stumbling over his words

Atem shook his head vigorously. He did not want Yugi to feel bad, not at all. It actually pleased him more than he could let on to know that Yugi had noticed such a minute detail in his routine like that, something that most people would not even see at all. “I just…” he started, trying very hard to fight a blush he could feel rising, “… think that this is so nice of you.”

Yugi, however, could not hide the faint tint that suddenly dusted his own cheeks, whether from embarrassment or something else, Atem could not be certain. “Thanks, I guess?” Yugi offered.

The younger student then added sugar into his black coffee while Atem swirled cream inside his own cup. He took a blissful sip of the hot beverage and heard the satisfied sigh from his drinking companion next to him. He glanced up at him again and noted something was amiss until it clicked in his mind. He pulled up his sweater sleeve and tugged at one of the many elastics he kept there amongst his bracelets. He selected a purple one and, without a word, he handed it to Yugi.

Who just blinked back at him quizzically.

Atem nudged his chin towards the unruly mop of spikes on Yugi’s head as he explained. “You usually wear your hair in a ponytail when you have basketball practice. It’s Friday, you have basketball practice, no?”

Yugi still had not moved to grab the offered hair tie and Atem thought for a moment he might have broken him or something, right until he spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. “Yes, I do.”

Atem twisted the hair tie in his hands, feeling the need to justify himself all of a sudden. “Just something I noticed too.”

Yugi’s response came much quicker this time. “I never implied you did not notice things!” he said louder and clearer, with a hint of guilt in his voice.

The senior smiled at him reassuringly, his own heart stopping its uneven beat to get back on a much more normal rhythm. He did not even know why he had said those words before, he just wanted Yugi to know that he could notice little things too, that he could be attentive to him too. “I know.”

Nimble fingers grabbed the purple elastic. Yugi put his coffee mug on the ground before grabbing his hair and carefully tried to put all of it inside the hair tie, failing at keeping the golden bangs in that came back down to frame his face and bright eyes. Done with his task, he picked up his coffee and clinked it silently against Atem’s own paper cup, gifting him a soft and gentle smile, one that warmed him even more than the coffee he held in his hand. They kept drinking their beverage, exchanging a few words about their recent Pokémon catches, and about how they should think about trading some of them eventually.

The doors to the locker hall opened up in a cacophony of students coming in, signaling the arrival of the school buses and the nearing beginning of the school day. Both boys got up and Yugi waved a quick goodbye, heading back to his locker, but swiveled on his heels about half way there.

“Thanks,” he said before his words would get lost in the crowd. “For the hair tie.”

Atem smiled back and raised his cup of coffee in reply.

=====

With the warmer temperatures more present, Atem had noticed that Yugi did not drive around as much, and that he would sometimes wait for him when he had a play rehearsal. The junior had taken the cute habit of leaving a post-it on his locker telling him where he would be, and Atem found he quite liked walking back home with the other. It gave them more time for longer conversation, and, although they did not live on the same street, they were not that far away from each other so that no one had to take a detour to adjust to their destination.

Sometimes, Yugi would wait up for him at the library where he would be finishing up a research project. Sometimes, he would be at the cafeteria, polishing up some homework or having a study session. But often, because of the nicer weather now, he would wait for him outside while he worked on some of his basketball techniques.

However, even if Yugi was outside today, he was not practising. Instead, he was perched on a skateboard, doing some basics turns and trying a few tricks in the school yard. He was not alone, a few other teens were scattered and doing their own thing, but Atem honestly just had eyes for the one teenager. He swallowed a little lump in his throat. He remembered Yugi calling him cool a couple of times, whether it was because he was in a play, or because he liked his music selection, or because he was not afraid to wear some more alternative clothing.

But seeing Yugi on a board, his hair tucked under his helmet, a light jacket over his hoodie, trying to get in a board flip… To Atem, Yugi was the cool one. Yugi may have been an assured nerd and a closeted geek, whenever he walked down the school corridors in his varsity hoodie, that huge smile on his face, Atem felt he could command a room. The junior was good in many sports, still managed to ace most of his classes, and he was such a cinnamon roll to everyone around him. He hung out with the popular jock crowd because of his athletic ability, and Atem still found himself wondering how Yugi could have just noticed him from the rest of the wallflower crowd in the school.

Mind you, he was very happy the other did. He often felt he would have never made the first move to go up and talk to Yugi, probably because if he would have never known they had anything in common if the younger teen had not approached him about gaming and music. And then the common interests had kept piling up and the conversation had gotten easier, and now everything felt so… natural. Like if they had not met each other officially just a good couple of weeks ago, but more like years sometimes.

From across the yard, Yugi’s eyes met his and his face lit up. He gave a few kicks his way and climbed down his board as he reached Atem and, coincidently, the school bag he had left next to the metal door.

Atem smiled at him. “You skateboard?” he prompted.

Yugi beamed with humble pride. “Why yes, I do!” He picked up his board and showed him the intricate designs on the inside flank of the board. “Meet Olivia, very trusted board!”

Atem whistled at the artistry, his fingers sliding along the grain of wood. “She’s also a very pretty girl.”

Yugi clicked open the fastening of his helmet. “I take it you don’t skate?” he asked.

“I value my limbs intact, thank you very much,” Atem answered tacitly, watching as Yugi strapped the board to his backpack and settled the whole thing on his back.

He then took off his helmet and ruffled his hair with one hand, keeping the head protection in the other. “Oh come on, it’s not that dangerous nor hard. I could teach you,” he offered immediately.

The senior frowned. He had tried many things in life, like ice skating and rollerblading. Heck, he had even tried snowboarding. All attempts at doing anything that looked remotely cool, but that somehow required skills he did not seem to possess, had failed drastically. “Can I nope out of this?” he responded seriously.

Yugi just winked back at him. “I’ll even lend you my helmet so you feel safer!”

Atem rolled his eyes at the suggestion. “Oh perfect, now I can focus on breaking my wrists and knees instead.”

Yugi bumped his shoulder against his in a friendly manner. “Come on, I’ll hold your hands so you won’t fall.”

The slight notion of Yugi helping him by holding his hands made his heart skip a beat, but he chose to ignore this minute detail, blaming the topic of conversation alone for that. He sighed loudly while pushing a bang of hair behind his pierced ear. “I have like zero balance, Yugi. I would not even be able to stay on the damn thing,” he explained while pointing this contraption on Yugi’s backpack.

Yugi clasped his hands together in a pleasing motion, the helmet swinging with the motion. “I promise I won’t laugh!” he said with cat-like pleading eyes.

Atem shielded his eyes from the very effective mind trick Yugi was pulling on him and shook his head. “Alright, alright, stop it!” He looked between his fingers and a shy smile appeared on his lips. He had never ever thought of trying skateboarding for real, but with Yugi, the possibility of climbing on a board seemed doable, almost pleasant. “I’ll… think about it. There, happy?”

Yugi’s eyes and smile lit up brighter than Christmas lights. “Very much so!”

They started walking down the familiar streets to both their houses, and the topic changed to Atem’s upcoming Physics exam, which Yugi had offered to help him with multiple times, although that material was a year higher than his current studies. The junior had managed to make some notions simpler to Atem already, although he had barely touched them at his current level. He had given him study tricks he used for certain formulas and equations, and funky mnemonics to remember harder notions. Atem had offered to help him out with his History lessons in exchange, which Yugi had jumped for joy for.

They made it to the street corner where they would inevitably separate, and Atem could feel a shift in the air as Yugi started playing with the strap of his backpack and kicking around pebbles on the ground with his shoes. He heard him take a deep breath, but his eyes stayed on the ground as he opened up his mouth to speak.

“I know this may not be your turf and feel free to turn me down or anything… but I have a match Friday, a pretty important one this season and I was wondering if you would come?” he asked with some hesitation.

Atem blinked for a second, but inside, he felt like exploding. Yugi had never asked him to come to his matches, mind you, the more recent ones had been against other schools, and never in their own school. He smiled, trying to not let it get too wide, and knew how to defuse the tension of the moment. “Are you looking for a personal cheerleader? Because I assure, I may be able to do a cartwheel alright, but that’s as athletic as I get.”

He could see the moment the joke set in Yugi as his shoulders dropped and his head snapped up to look at him with a small smile of his own. “Better than a lot of people already! But no, I just… I thought it would be nice if you were there.”

“Just a heads up, I have zero knowledge of basketball rules and regulations,” Atem countered seriously.

“I could teach you,” Yugi immediately offered, but Atem’s expression must have told him his perplexity at the prospect because he added something right away. “Or not from the look on your face right now.”

Atem just smiled again, a warmth spreading inside him. “Okay.”

Yugi blinked, his expression confused. “Okay what?”

Atem’s boot kicked the edge of Yugi’s converse playfully. “I’ll be there.”

As soon as the answer reached inside Yugi’s mind, his whole body seemed to irradiate giddiness, from his smile, to his eyes and jittery hands. “You will?!” he exclaimed, probably louder than he had meant to.

The senior laughed at the outburst. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

Yugi’s words tumbled out of his mouth rapidly. “I’m not, I mean, I am, but honestly, I’m more happy than surprised.”

“It’s important to you, and you asked me,” Atem replied with honesty, and happiness he had to confess. He was truly happy Yugi had asked him something so simple, yet meaningful to him. He liked sharing things with the junior and going to his match, that was something they had yet to share. His expression deadpanned however as he added: “But I will not cheer for you.”

Yugi wiggled his eyebrows amusingly. “Not even a little? Just a tiny chant? ‘Go Basketeers!’” he said with a small pump of his fist.

Atem chuckled as he shook his head in negation. “Nope, especially with such a lame name!”

The other feigned indignation as he inhaled dramatically, a hand on his heart. “You don’t like Dumas?”

The older teenager rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. “Overrated in my opinion.”

Yugi mimicked a fencing movement, like a musketeer, and Atem would never say it out loud, but he found it oh so very cute. “Touché, my dear,” the junior said.

Atem motioned with his own air blade, flicking his wrist and arm to his side. “It’s actually  _ mon cher _ if we’re being pernickety.”

Yugi whistled his admiration. “Look at you, pulling French and fancy words out of your beanie!”

Both of them laughed as if it was the funniest thing in the world, and to the both of them, it probably was.

=====

Atem did not know how to bring the specific topic to his tight-knit group of friends. As he chewed endlessly on his carrot, he could not help but wonder why he felt this was such a hard subject to break. Opportunity presented itself on its own as Marik opened up the conversation, his head settled on Bakura’s lap.

“Movie night at my place Friday?” the blonde asked while being fed a grape.

Well, it was now and never, and Atem swallowed his bite of carrot before diving in instead of dancing around the issue like he often did. “Actually, I… can’t this week. I’m busy.”

This prompted Marik to sit up abruptly and look at him straight in the eyes, barely an inch from his face. “You’re never busy on Friday nights.”

The other rolled his eyes as he pushed his friend away, his hand right in the middle of his face. “Geez, thanks for reminding me of my dwindling social life.”

Mana swapped at his shoulder from his right. “Hey, we’re your social life, I take insult in that!”

“What are you doing on Friday, Atem?” Mahad asked calmly, picking at the chocolate chips in his cookie.

Atem really hoped the heat that built up on his cheeks was not as visible as it felt. “I’m… going to see the basketball game,” he answered softly.

Marik blinked back at him before raising an eyebrow. “I’m not sure I heard you right. You…” he started while gesturing at all of him. “… are going to a sports game?”

Now that he was hearing the words out of Marik’s mouth, they did feel very surprising, especially since Atem had never attended any of the school’s sporting events before. He never had any inkling to them really, never had any reason to go to them… But now, things had changed. “Yeah, Yugi asked me yesterday.”

Bakura popped the bubble from his chewing gum as he eyed him quizzically. “Who’s Yugi?”

Marik was still looking right at Atem as he replied to his boyfriend. “Atem’s new friend. The short stuff.”

Mana clasped unto Atem’s arm in enthusiasm. “Well, I think it’s a splendid idea! Can I come too?” she inquired with bright eyes and a giddy smile.

Atem’s heart felt lighter at her interjection. He knew this was very unlike him to want to participate in school life in any form, but he was glad this might not seem like the issue he thought it would have been. He needed to trust his friends more, to just let go of his many doubts. “Sure, I mean, only if you want to,” he replied to her with a smile.

She gave his arm a happy squeeze. “Awesome! Can I bring my boyfriend?”

Mahad spit the chocolate chip he was currently munching on, Marik spurted the sip of juice he was currently trying to swallow and Atem tried not to choke on his next carrot bite. And then, as if they had all regained some senses of themselves at the exact same time, they yelled the same word all together. “What?!”

Mana just blinked innoncently as Bakura was the one to speak first. “The look on all your faces is priceless right now. Just the perfect mix between shock and ‘whose face do I need to punch’.”

“Shut up, Bakura!” Mahad, Marik and Atem once again all shouted at the same time.

But inside, Atem felt at peace… and dare he think almost too happy about his Friday evening plans.

=====

He did not understand much of what was happening on the court at first. He was also kind of glad that Mana’s boyfriend had basic knowledge of basketball and kept feeding him information as the three of them sat in the bleachers that Friday evening. Mana had introduced him as a friend from the drawing class she took on Saturday mornings. They had similar artistic skills, and he looked somewhat on the shy side, but he was pretty sweet to her. Atem just hoped Marik and Mahad would not give him the full pat-down treatment when they met him.

He watched as Yugi dove around the court like the fastest mouse around traps, avoiding his opponents, and he smiled at being able to witness his friend enjoy something he was really good at. He saw him high five his teammates after good plays and smile with all the brightness he knew him capable of, and Atem felt happy right down to his toes. When the purple haired teen took a break to down a couple sips of water from his bottle, his eyes immediately went to Atem and this one swore the smile was even brighter as he waved shyly again.

Atem had made it too close to the beginning of the game to be able to catch Yugi before the start of it. He had taken a seat in the bleachers, not the one he would have normally aimed for, but one he knew he would be able to show his presence to Yugi if this one would start looking. He watched as the players settled in and Yugi had seemed really nervous, playing with his hands and bangs like Atem had noticed he did when he was anxious. And then Yugi had noticed him in the bleachers and Atem had sent him the best smile he could, and the tension seemed to evaporate from Yugi’s whole body as he beamed back at him.

The game was tight, but the home team ended up winning, joy erupting as a tall blonde made the winning shot. Atem followed suit with everyone around and stood up clapping. He watched as the players celebrated on the court, and then people started cramping around the exit. Yugi caught sight of him and motioned vigorously for him to come down and meet him. Atem briefly asked Mana and her boyfriend if they wanted to come, but they declined, preferring to head home right away, but Mana made sure it was also okay with Atem. He appreciated the gesture, but told her he was going to be alright.

He climbed down the bleachers and there Yugi was waiting with the blonde from that last shot and another tall brunet, making Atem feel oh so small next to the two other teenagers. Yugi immediately closed the short distance between them, his step giddy.

“I’m so happy you came!” he exclaimed as soon as he reached Atem.

Atem chuckled almost nervously. “I told you I would, didn’t I?”

Yugi scratched the back of his neck and giggled lightly, his own nerves showing a little bit. “Yeah, but I’m still allowed to be happy about it!”

The two tall guys approached the duo of shorter teens and the blonde caught Yugi around the neck in a tight bear hug. For a second, Atem felt like Yugi would actually start choking, but the embrace seemed loose enough for him to breathe, but tight enough to maintain him in place.

“Yugi always does joy to its most extensive,” the brunet next to them offered to Atem as some form of explanation.

The blonde nuzzled Yugi’s cheek playfully with his own cheek. “Well, the little dude’s got excitement larger than himself, that’s for sure!”

Yugi blushed in embarrassment and tried to wiggle out of the iron grip the other had on him. Atem felt compelled to either help him or watch this all play out with a small smile. He chose the latter as Yugi finally managed to reply. “Shut it, Jou! I’m actually trying to do something here!”

The other guy Atem did not know pinched the blonde harshly and the aforementioned teen let go of Yugi with a yelp. The brunet then bent down to whisper loudly in the shorter teen’s ear. “I can shut him up for you.”

The blonde was rubbing the sore spot on his arm as he squinted menacingly at his friend. “I could beat your ass to the ground before you can even try!”

Yugi sighed and shook his head, while Atem was still but a mere spectator to all that was happening right before his eyes. He could understand why Yugi was friends with the other two teens; he had a similar dynamic with his own friends, meaning that his new friend must be pretty comfortable around these guys too.

“Guys, you’re not helping…” Yugi all but whined out loud.

The blonde swapped his hand firmly on the other’s shoulder. “Oi, see? You’re making me look bad in front of Yug’s new buddy! I’m forgetting my manners!”

“You have manners?” the brunet replied promptly.

The blonde immediately looked like he was ready to start a fight. “Why you-“

But Yugi had other plans and he would not be denied them any longer. “Guys!” His voice boomed out against the walls of the empty gymnasium, even making Atem jump lightly in surprise. The two teens turned to face him, and like children being scorned, they retreated into their own personal bubbles on the spot.

Yugi cleared his throat. “Hum, so this is Atem. Atem, these two lovely idiots are Jou…” he said as he introduced the blonde then the brunet, “… and Honda.”

Atem took a second to collect himself before holding out his hand to shake theirs. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Instead of shaking his hand, Honda bumped his fist against it. “You don’t have to lie. I mean, I’m pleasurable, but him?” He pointed the blonde with his thumb. “He’s as annoying as they come.”

Jou also bumped fists with Atem, who had closed his hand this time to accept the casual greeting. “What are you talking about? I’m the most enjoyable person I know.” A loud rumble made Atem’s eyes grow wider as he wondered about the source of the noise, but only for a second as the blonde added to his previous comment. “And also hungry, like super hungry.”

“When aren't you, Jou?” Yugi replied laughing.

Atem watched as Honda wrapped his arm around Jou’s shoulders. “How about we go feed that black hole of a stomach you have? You guys in?” he said as he looked at both Yugi and Atem.

Atem was taken aback by the casualty of all of this. Yugi had just introduced him to his friends, something he had yet to do from his side too. And yet, here they were, just asking him to hang with all of them, no question asked. It almost felt surreal to be invited to hang with jocks like if it was the most natural thing in the world to happen. However, the prospect of it made him somewhat nervous. It was not that he did not like meeting new people, but he was always awkward around them.

Yugi had been the exception, he guessed.

He had felt awkward around him, but barely, more like an afterthought than a feeling truly. Like he should have felt more awkward, but he did not.

He did not want to make a hasty decision, especially not knowing if Yugi wanted to go along with his friends so he went with something neutral. “I wouldn’t want to intrude on your post-game celebration,” he replied to Honda.

Once again, the honest smile that came from Jou, a nearly complete stranger to him, surprised him. “Nah, you wouldn’t! We’d be happy to have you with us!” the blonde offered back.

Atem would never be able to tell if Yugi had sensed his hesitation or nervousness at the prospect of hanging with new people, but he swooped in and his reply suddenly made it easier to breathe for him. “Actually, I was thinking of heading home earlier tonight. I’m beat,” the short purple haired teen answered.

Both the tall boys just shrugged and smiled. Jou held his fist for Yugi to bump. “Alright, I guess Atem will be tagging with you, heh?”

Yugi did not even have time to reply that Honda bumped fists with him too and swiveled around still clinging to Jou, dragging him along. “We’ll see you guys later then!”

For a second, both of the left behind boys watched as the other two bickered like cats and dogs all the way out of the gym, grabbing their belongings along the way. Yugi was the first to laugh, and Atem joined him almost instantly. Then Yugi walked to the bench close to them and grabbed his denim jacket and his backpack. He threw both on as he looked at Atem with a soft smile.

“What do you say? Want to walk home together?” he asked.

Atem replaced the strap of the backpack he never left the house without and responded with his own smile. “Sure. I mean, I’d like that.”

They both fell into stride, leaving the gym and heading towards the school’s exit. There was no one left inside the darkened school except the janitor who was whistling and waving at them as they passed him. The cool spring air hit them as they passed the glass doors from the main entrance and Atem realised that, after all the noise from the game, he appreciated the stillness of the evening around them, like a comforting blanket.

He realised their steps were talking them along their usual path. “No car tonight?” he asked Yugi.

The other was currently retying his hair into the ponytail that had come loose during his game as he answered. “I actually prefer to skate and walk, especially in such nice weather.”

Atem’s fingers reached inside his pockets, finding something he had been keeping there for the past few days. He knew the idea may be stupid, but when he had started sharing his music mixes with Yugi, he had thought a couple of times of what it would be like to actually listen to them together. They had walked home many times before, but they had talked all the way on all occasions. However, tonight was different. Tonight was not a school night like every other time. Tonight was much later, much quieter than their usual time. Tonight was maybe the right occasion to try this.

He grabbed the earbuds from his pocket and held them out for the other to see. “Well, then I… I brought these if you want.”

Yugi stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes of the small device. “You want us to listen to music together?” he said.

Atem halted right after and turned to face him, his nerves all tied up from the question. “Only if you want to,” he replied trying to keep his voice steady.

He could feel the tension building, as Yugi just stared at him without blinking. At the moment, He could not read any specific emotion on the other’s face and it destabilised his already fragile confidence. Yugi asked another question. “And you brought earbuds so we could share?”

“Should I be regretting asking?” Atem let out, barely above a whisper, now clearly regretting it.

Yugi’s face changed pronto. “NO!” he all but screamed, before slapping a hand on his mouth. Atem watched as his cheeks took a slight rosy tint, and fingers freed his mouth once more. “I mean, absolutely not, I’m just…”

Although Atem could feel the pressure of his chest lighten, he still hesitated in his reply. “Just what?”

Yugi slowly untucked one of his backpack straps and shifted his bag to the front of his body. He unzipped the small pocket on top and, with nimbles fingers, took out an almost identical pair of earbuds. “I’ve been carrying these around for the past week too. The occasion just never came.”

Atem felt something tug at his heartstrings right there, something familiar yet foreign, and it suddenly filled him with soft warmth and happiness. “You have?” he inquired, although he clearly knew the answer already.

Yugi nodded and a goofy, but oh so endearing, smile appeared on his lips. “Yes.”

Atem wasted no time in taking his CD player out, plugging in the earbuds instead of the headphones he still left around his neck. He handed one of the buds to Yugi. “Well, no time like the present then.” He placed his own one inside his ear as he watched Yugi do the same. “Just tell me if you want me to skip.”

Yugi’s purple eyes shone brighter than the streetlight basting them in their yellowish glow. “Won’t happen, I want to hear them all. I love your mixes.”

As Atem pressed play and both were engulfed inside a perfectly harmonious bubble of rock notes and lyrics, the image of just reaching out and holding Yugi’s hand flashed inside his mind, and he had to control himself very hard not to stumble along the cracks of the sidewalk. It was not like it was much, but it was something else.

But nothing to fuss over as the image faded promptly from his mind.

Their feet took them on the familiar streets they had walked many times together by now, and sometimes, Yugi would make a comment about a song in particular or a specific line in the lyrics that spoke to him. Atem appreciated it, especially when it was a line that he himself liked a lot. They kept in stride, making sure they were close enough so the earbud would not yank out of their ear if one or the other was too fast, but this soft and slow going pace was nice tonight. It made for more listening time.

On the last stretch of their trip before the corner where they would inevitably split, another song started and Yugi’s eyes lit up as he grabbed Atem’s arm. The heat from Yugi’s hand permuted through his jacket, or maybe that was just an illusion as it was gone as soon as the hand retreated itself. “Wait, wait, wait! I know that song!”

Atem blinked in surprise. “You do?”

The excitement on Yugi’s face was evident. “Yes, well, heard it actually! With the ending credits of an X-Files episode!”

Someone should have warned Atem that tonight was just going to be an endless stream of surprises. What were the odds Yugi was watching a show he had watched as a kid. “You? You watch the X-Files?” he asked, stunned.

Yugi laughed, seemingly as surprised as Atem was. He took the CD player from Atem’s hands and paused the song. They were both now just standing on the sidewalk, and Atem waited for whatever Yugi was about to say.

“Yes, it’s kind of a funny story,” the other started with a chuckle. “I was actually traumatised by it as a kid. And then, earlier this year, one of my teachers, if you can believe it, made us watch the pilot episode of the series. I honestly thought I was going to faint, but hey, what do you know? I ended up loving! I’ve been cramming some episodes with Grandpa ever since.”

Atem laughed at the similarity of their childhood story. “I got traumatised by an episode when I was young too. The one with the ancient Egyptian curse and the killer cats?”

Yugi’s eyes went wide with recognition. “Oh man, that one was both awesome and terrifying! You still watch the show?” he asked.

Atem shook his head, a bout of melancholy passing through his mind briefly. “Not that much, no. I used to share these moments with my dad and well, we grew apart a little bit these past few years.”

Yugi’s expression fell. “I’m sorry,” he immediately offered.

Atem smiled at the gesture. “Why? You have absolutely nothing to do about that.”

The other chuckled back lightly, shifting on his feet. “Yeah, but when someone shares something sad, I feel like it’s my civic duty to apologize.”

Atem rolled his eyes playfully before smirking. “Well, you could make it up to me then.”

“How?” Yugi asked, blinking.

“Maybe we could watch an X-Files episode together someday,” the bronzed teenager answered.

For a second, Yugi just seemed completely stunned by the suggestion and then his whole face lit up. “Really? You would do that with me?”

His elation was contagious as Atem could not control the widening of his own smile. “Yeah, if that’s okay.”

“I’d love that.” And just like a kid, Yugi bounced happily on his feet, and Atem found it adorable.

Yugi then pressed play and handed back the CD player to Atem as they resumed their walk, the song filling in their ears, and the lyrics hitting all the right places.

And suddenly Atem realised something.

Recently, he had been walking along the walls, lost in a sea of teenagers, behind most of them all the time. Behind all these students walking with confidence while he felt like stumbling upon his own shoes. And yet, here he was, his feet as steady as ever, in perfect stride with Yugi, walking beside him.

And it felt good.

Better than good.

It felt right.


	4. Spring - Blossom

April settled in nicely, just like these moments that Yugi found himself spending with Atem more often.

Something had shifted on that evening when the other had made it to his basketball game. At first, when he had not seen him, Yugi had thought maybe Atem had changed his mind about coming. After all, he had learned that his new friend rarely attended school events, not really into that whole school spirit thing, preferring calmer evenings to the crowded gymnasium. He did not want to think too much about it, it had just been an invitation he had extended, simply that.

Although it had taken him days to build up the nerves to ask Atem if he would come.

Why it had made him so nervous he could not explain, but it had.

Heck, he had also barely eaten for dinner before the game because he was a nervous wreck still just at the prospect of him showing up.

It was not like he had asked him out on a date or anything.

Oh geez, what if Atem had thought that this was a date?

Why was Yugi thinking about dates anyway?

For a second then, he had thought he was going to faint before he caught sight of a familiar face in the bleachers, right in the middle. Garnets met amethysts, Atem had smiled at him, and suddenly, everything was right again and Yugi let go of the breath he had not realised he had been holding.

He thought he had played one of his best games that night, even Jou had mentioned he had been on fire then. He had watched as Atem had climbed down the bleachers, his hair in his trademark ponytail, his glasses perched on his nose, and his upper body draped in a hooded flannel jacket. He had felt his inner temperature rise, but he knew that it must have been from the excitement of the game he had just played.

Jou and Honda had been the lovable pricks they always were, and he had used the excuse of being tired to walk home with Atem instead of hanging a bit longer with his teammates and friends. With all the practice he had that week, he did not have enough time to work around his schedule and enjoy those little moments with Atem.

And from the realisation to the sharing of earbuds, from the recognition to the telling of childhood stories, the evening had been memorable for sure. They had parted ways soon after that, at their usual corner, and instead of a good-bye, this time, they had exchanged good nights, and it felt even sweeter, probably too sweet for what it should have been, but Yugi could not care less then.

Of course, his ever-overthinking brain had made a big deal out of it, but his heart had eventually kicked his brain’s butt and let him sleep in the lingering warmth he had felt from that parting. The next few days, it was almost as if the both of them tried even harder to make their schedules work. They would meet up during lunch period after eating with their friends to have study sessions. Atem had somehow made history interesting and Yugi was thriving on seeing Atem understanding Physics notions.

Atem then appeared one morning, his video store card in hand, asking Yugi if he was free after school today so they could maybe rent an X-Files DVD from the store and watch an episode or two together, saying he was making good on his previous offer. He seemed so forward, yet so shy about the whole thing that Yugi felt his heart swell even more than it had since that Friday evening.

Yugi responded by saying he already had a couple of DVDs he had yet to watch so they could go straight to his house after school if Atem was okay with it. He realised he had not thought this through as he was an apprehensive mess when they reached his house, traveling all the way together for the first time.

Suddenly, he felt Atem stop right next to him, his eyes going wide. “Wait, you live above a game shop?” he said as Yugi went to the side door of the building.

Yugi chuckled nervously. It was not that much of a guarded secret, but some people had made fun of him for that specific fact. “Yeah, I know, kind of weird.”

The other shook his head animatedly, his eyes not only wide but almost sparkling at that point. “What do you mean, weird? It’s awesome!” he exclaimed, his gaze trying to take the whole thing all in.

“My grandpa owns it,” Yugi felt compelled to add.

Atem’s whole body betrayed his excitement now as his hands and feet began shifting. “Even better!”

Right then, Yugi had to mentally slap himself from even thinking about hugging the other. It was a spur of the moment thought, sure, but the fact that Atem was so open about his own thoughts right now, so childishly endearing… it just made him want to close the already small distance between them.

It was just a thought, though. He would never act upon such a ridiculous idea.

Yugi snickered, regaining control of his mind. “So I take it you like games? Let me guess, word games the most?” he asked.

Atem’s eyes found his again. “Nothing wrong with Scrabble,” he answered with a hesitant shrug.

The junior bumped shoulders with the senior playfully. “Nothing wrong for sure! I love Scrabble!”

The senior smirked back at him. “Remind me to never mention that in front of my mom.”

“Why?” Yugi inquired as he took out his keys and opened up the door before turning around back to Atem.

Atem scratched his cheek with his index, and Yugi had to remind himself to breathe because he found the gesture utterly adorable. “You know those sweet people that sometimes turn into the darkest version of themselves?” the crimson eyed teen answered. “That’s my mom playing Scrabble.”

Yugi laughed loudly at that. “Duly noted.”

They walked up the stairs and, right before reaching the top, the purple haired teen turned around with an awkward smile on his face. One more detail he had totally forgotten in his excitement to spend an evening with Atem…

“Just a heads-up, my gramps can be… overbearing.”

And just as he finished his sentence, he bumped into someone right at the top of the stairs, like a sentinel guarding a gate. Yugi almost lost his balance right there, but a hand on his lower back stopped him from tumbling. He felt the heat of that stabilizing palm climb all the way up his spine to his face, his pale skin heating up.

tI should not have done that.

A simple touch should not have made him feel this way.

Fortunately for him, the hand quickly retracted and the stern face of his grandfather waiting for him brought him back to reality quickly enough.

“You brought a friend,” the elder man simply offered as a greeting.

Yugi rolled his eyes as he climbed up the last step, allowing passage for Atem following him. “Yeah, I do have a social life sometimes.”

However, the man was having none of his teenage attitude. “But it’s a new friend.”

Yugi flushed in embarrassment, immediately wishing he could somehow melt into the floor. “You’re making this weird.”

He started making his way towards his bedroom to escape his grandfather when this one reminded him of an important detail, making this whole encounter yet again more awkward than Yugi could have ever foreseen.

“Your room is a mess, young man.”

Yugi chose to hide behind his hands. This was not happening. Why the hell had he thought bringing Atem home would ever be a good idea? “Grandpa!”

Atem who was currently just standing next to him, silent and blinking, and probably wondering why he himself had thought this was a good idea too. But right then, a bright smile appeared on his lips as he extended a hand. “Hi, I’m Atem.”

And Yugi once again had to get his own heartbeat back to a normal rate seeing his new friend just going with the flow and not running away from it.

A few minutes later, both boys and Yugi’s grandfather settled in the living room, all ready for an impromptu X-Files marathon. Gramps had taken his usual spot in the armchair, Yugi his own on the couch and, strangely, after a very brief hesitation, Atem had opted for a spot on the floor in front of the couch, a pillow under his bum. Yugi had found it curious, but had shrugged it off. Who was he to judge anyway?

Yugi had filled a bowl with cheese crackers and they were passing it between each other, Atem happily munching on them, mentioning it was one of his favourite snacks too. The younger teen was not even surprised at the affirmation, just adding this detail to the ever-growing pile of things they had in common.

Pokémon.

Music.

Books and words.

Games.

Nerd and geek TV shows.

And now food.

Both of them were instantly engrossed in the first episode, Yugi drinking in every single replica, his eyes riveted on the screen. As the credits rolled in between the two episodes, Yugi glanced down at Atem, sitting there on the floor, cross-legged. An image formed in his mind and it was too late for him to stop it from spreading into a full blown moment.

How would it feel to actually lay his head on Atem’s lap right then? Would the other allow it? Would he reach gentle fingers into his hair and just play with it? Would they stay like this to watch the next episode?

Or would Atem actually climb on the couch next to him? Would he want to cuddle under a blanket, the bowl of crackers between them, probably even forgotten at one point? Would they doze off after that next episode?

“I think you have to press play.”

Yugi almost dropped the remote controller on Atem’s head. Almost because it actually fell on his shoulder and then on the ground in a clatter of plastic. The other picked it up and handed back to him, glancing up. “I’m supposed to be the clumsy one, remember?” he said with a smirk.

Yugi rolled his eyes, taking back the device from the other. “It’s probably contagious at this point.”

Garnets stayed on him, a hint of worry in them. “Did that last one freak you out that much?”

Yugi shook his head. The episode had not freak him out at all, but the fact that his brain had somehow conjured up a sweet domestic scene between him and Atem might have as well. “N-no! I just got lost in my own head for a moment.”

The fact that Atem smiled up from his seated position in front of him did not help cool the warmth he was currently engulfed in. “Wanna fly back down from the moon and watch another one?” the senior offered gently.

Yugi nodded and returned the smile. Another episode would not hurt, he could push away the thoughts that had invaded his mind and focus on paranormal phenomenon instead. “As long as gramps doesn’t mind us stealing the TV a little longer…” he started.

Atem countered with another bright smirk as he pointed towards the armchair. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. He passed out halfway through the episode.”

The other sighed and shook his head, chuckling. “Yeah, that tends to happen…”

Another episode actually turned into two until Yugi’s mom arrived from work and turned on the light in the living room, making both boys realise how dark it had become and how late it must have been. Quickly, Atem picked himself up from the floor and confounded himself in excuses about how he had taken most of Yugi’s evening from him and how he should get going. Yugi told him everything was fine and that they both had been too caught into the show to notice the time, and they were both kind of a blubbering mess at the moment, until Yugi’s mom actually interjected and asked if Atem was staying for dinner.

Both boys just blinked at her in silence. She shrugged and headed into the kitchen, stating that she had better start working on the meal then.

Yugi did not know if it was the evening lighting or something else, but he swore there was a slight blush on Atem’s cheeks. “I mean… I don’t want to impose and-“ the one started.

Yugi waved his hands in front of him and cut him off. “No, she asked you. You’re not imposing! It’s totally fine!”

The senior, however, still showed his uncertainty. “Are you sure? I mean, this was kind of last minute with me asking this morning and-“

The junior held up a decisive hand between them. “Hey, I told you. This is totally fine. I’d… like for you to stay for dinner.”

It seemed the other had nothing else to add as he smiled timidly and nodded. He made a quick phone call home to tell his own mother not to wait for him, and to make sure it was also okay with her. He then insisted on helping with anything he could in the kitchen, and as Yugi set the table, he stole glances at him cutting some vegetables and making small talk with his mother. Yugi had always seen Atem shy away from conversation, but seeing him chat casually with his mother brought a huge smile to his face. It was not such a big thing, really, but to him, it was just so heartwarming.

Gramps eventually woke up from his slumber and joined them as they ate. Yugi’s mother asked a few questions here and there about school and the likes, keeping the topics light but friendly. Atem answered politely and Yugi briefly hoped the other was comfortable with all of this. But there was no telltales of nervousness, at least, not any of the ones he had noticed from the senior before.

Yugi offered to walk Atem back home, but this one refused, stating he had already taken too much of his evening, prompting Yugi to roll his eyes and tell him once again he had not minded one bit. He waved and watched as Atem started walking down the street towards his own place, a smile still plastered on his face as he climbed back up the stairs to the apartment above the game shop. He went into the kitchen to help his mom clean up the dishes from dinner.

He should have known she would make a comment.

“He’s a nice kid,” she simply said.

Yugi snorted at the mention. “Not really a kid anymore.”

She nudged him with a soapsuds covered hand. “You’re all kids in my mind, but that’s not my point.”

He focused his attention on drying the plate in his hands, not sure he was ready to hear where this was going. “What is your point then?” he asked nonetheless.

She laid a kiss on his temple before resuming her task. “That’s he’s a REALLY nice kid.”

Yugi did not even try to disagree. “Yeah… he is,” he whispered back.

=====

“I feel like I’m neglecting you…”

Jou choked on his grape juice. Yugi immediately grabbed a few napkins from his tray and handed them to him. They were currently seated outside at a picnic table, taking in the bright noon sunlight. Temperatures were on the rise, and Yugi felt himself living for those parcels of warmth.

Jou took in a deep breath as his hazel eyes settled on Yugi’s purple ones. “Why?” he inquired, wiping his mouth.

The shorter one played idly with the crumbs of his sandwich, downing his eyes. “Because I’ve been spending a lot of time with Atem.”

The blonde flicked him lightly on the forehead, but strongly enough for him to snap his head back up. “So what? Yug, I ain’t going to throw a tantrum just because you have a new friend.”

Yugi rubbed at the now sore spot on his forehead. “I know, I just feel like a bad friend.”

Jou opened up a bag of sour gummies and presented it to his friend after taking a couple for himself first. “Buddy, friendships take time, and I can tell this one is important to you.”

“It is, I can’ explain it, but it is,” Yugi countered, grabbing a candy and nibbling on it.

With basketball practice, study sessions, walks with Atem and the occasional random activity they had come up with the last weeks, time had seemed to have gotten away from him too. Of course, he knew Jou also had his own pastimes, and a shiny new girlfriend to boot, but he felt like he was not being as present for his friend as he should be.

Jou laughed and smiled earnestly. “You know, not everything needs an explanation in life. Things just happen sometimes. You met this guy, you vibed with him and now, you’re friends. Simple.”

Simple.

It kind of was, honestly.

Atem and him had stumbled upon each other a couple of times before actually getting to know one another. They had talked and learned about themselves, they had shared activities, they had bounded.

Like kids did in elementary school really. Like everyone with a new friend did.

So why did this not feel so simple anymore?

He could not help but laugh at his own confusion and inner debacle. He was making things complicated when they did not have to be. His own head was planting traps on him and he was falling into them instead of just enjoying the view, enjoying this whole new friendship for what it was.

“I just…” he started then took a short breath. “I find it hilarious how much in common we have. It still surprises me, but not that much, you know?”

Jou’s eyes widen largely in agreement. “Dude, you guys connect on such a level, it’s uncanny! I swear twins have less in common then the two of you.”

Yugi chewed on his gummy worm, his eyes unfocused for a moment. He did not know why, but he felt compelled to add another detail. “He stayed for dinner the other day. Mom invited him.”

The blonde whistled in admiration. “Mom likes him,” he breathed out.

The two of them started chuckling like kids at the same time. “I guess she does,” Yugi replied.

=====

Monday morning, Yugi found Atem fidgeting nervously with his lock, trying the combination probably not for the first time, seeing as he seemed to be getting very angry with him. His fist connected with the metal just as Yugi leaned against the adjacent locker.

“I could pick it for you if you want,” he offered with a smirk.

Atem raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. “You pick locks?”

Yugi just shrugged, still smiling. “No, but I could try if that makes you feel better.”

Atem just laughed and let go of the lock. He shifted his headphones from his head to his neck and pushed his glasses back up his nose. He adjusted the strap of his backpack, and Yugi counted right there three telltales of nervousness. Something was eating up at Atem, he was now sure of it. However, he did not want to poke at it, knowing it might just make it worse so he just waited a few more seconds to see if the other would open up about it.

Which, somewhat surprisingly, he did.

But when he opened up his mouth, it was to breach a topic Yugi was surprised he was so anxious about to begin with.

“I… I have my play this Friday,” Atem almost released in one single breath.

Yugi only blinked, but he sensed something underneath Atem’s comment. “I remember.”

Atem let out a breath and pushed his bangs behind his ear. Another telltale. “You’re going to make me ask, right?” His tone was almost pleading.

Yugi thought about blaming the lack of caffeine in his brain for not understanding exactly what Atem was trying to tell him. “Ask what?”

The senior still would not look at him directly, his eyes shifting between him and the floor, not knowing where to set themselves. “If you’d like to come,” he replied softly.

Oh.

_ Oh. _

Wait, Atem was nervous about asking him to come to his play? But why? It had never even been a question in Yugi’s mind that he was going to go to his play at all. He had checked his basketball schedule to make sure he did not have a game, or he might have asked to be excused from it. This was what friends did for each other; they supported them. Atem had come to his important game a while back, he had even managed to make it to another one after that.

And there it was again, the need to reach and touch the other, just with a comforting hand on the shoulder, just a small touch, nothing more. But a need still. Yugi’s fingers curled into a fist to resist the temptation.

Instead, he pasted the brightest smile he could because, although he was currently struggling with something so ridiculous, he was also very happy about a certain turn of his events, and about being able to keep his own mouth shut for as long as he did. “I bought my ticket a month ago.”

Atem’s head snapped to meet his gaze and the genuine, but giddy surprise in them was heartwarming to the other. “Wait what?” he just said.

Yugi kept on smiling and cocked his head to the side. “I asked your friend Mana. She got me a seat with your friends.”

He watched in amusement as Atem facepalmed and groaned. “The little weasel never told me.”

He kept leaning on the locker, crossing his arms, that teasing smile still on his face. “You could still ask me though.”

Atem blinked, then frowned, confused. “Why?”

Yugi did not even know where this courage was coming from. He was not that suave individual, he was a nervous mess half of the time, except on the basketball court. He felt immediately like sobering up and dropped his teasing. “So that I could answer properly,” he answered.

Atem then swallowed and took a deep breath. Then, he looked at Yugi with a soft smile. “Yugi, would you-“

But the other just straight up cut him and blurted out his reply. “Yes, I would love to.”

Atem’s fist bumped with his shoulder as he countered, slightly vexed and annoyed. “I wasn’t even done!”

Yugi rubbed his now sore shoulder, but smirked nonetheless. “Doesn’t matter. The question wasn’t important, my answer was.”

Right then, the senior just looked at him without a word, Yugi trying to decipher what the emotions that were invading those deep garnet eyes were, but failing drastically. Then Atem just shook his head and laughed, his laughter covered by the sound of the bell ringing loudly, students already filling the halls around them.

=====

Atem had three play rehearsals that week, and all three of them would last much longer than the others since they were donning their costumes and making sure the props all work correctly, as well as the lighting and everything else. Yugi knew this meant they would not walk home together, although he had offered to wait or even come back later. However, the senior had insisted he did not, he did not want Yugi to spoil his evenings just for him.

Yugi had countered with a mid-week coffee and muffin offering, which Atem has accepted, but only at the condition that he was the one to bring the coffee for the both of them on Friday morning.

Part of him was happy to also get some more time with Jounouchi who had finally gotten his bike fixed and started coming to school with it. They were both currently heading back home, Yugi kicking his skateboard to match Jou’s softer pedaling. Sometimes, they talked, sometimes, they did not, but Yugi was comfortable with this arrangement.

Today though, it seemed liked Jou had some talking he needed to do.

He circled his bike around and stopped right next to his friend. “Yug?”

Yug,i who had still not noticed his friend had stopped, just kept moving forward. “Yeah?”

Jou’s voice sounded from behind him, much too assured for the words that came out of his mouth. “I know this may be super straight coming from me, but… do you like him?”

Yugi’s next kick faltered and he almost fell flat on the ground, but caught himself and his runaway board right on time. “What?”

Jou watched as Yugi slowly turned around to face him. “Atem, do you like him?” he reiterated.

Yugi heard the question and raised an eyebrow. He picked up his board and walked back towards his friend. “Sure, he’s a pretty good friend and-”

Jou interrupted him and there was a dead serious look on his face. “That’s not what I meant.”

Suddenly, Yugi realised the implication in the question and he dropped his board on the ground, the clatter of it against the pavement so much louder in his ears than it should have been.

_ Do you like him? _

_ Atem, do you like him? _

“Oh,” was all he could manage because…

Honestly…

He had never really asked himself.

Or maybe, he realised, he did not really want to ask himself.

Jou seemed to sense his unease and patted him on the helmet, smiling almost tenderly. “You don’t have to answer, but maybe you should start thinking about it, ya know?”

Yugi needed to steer the topic away from this before his already reddening face threatened to explode. He did not know if it was from embarrassment, from the spring heat or from something deeper, but he felt hot and exposed, hence wanting to dig himself a hole in the ground to hide until this feeling passed. “So… what do you wear to a play?” he asked out of the blue, but realised it was a pretty decent and pertinent question.

Jou’s face contorted in some sort of funny grimace. “You do realise I’m the farthest thing away from a fashion icon right?”

Yugi facepalmed as he shook his head. “I know, but I’m going in blind here!”

“As long as you don’t dress like a blind man…” the blonde countered, wittily before starting to pedal again.

Yugi just ran after him before jumping on his skateboard again. “Jounouchi!”

Wisps of Jou’s pondering question clung to his brain, but he whisked them away to the far corners of his mind. Maybe there would be a time for them, but not now, not soon. Not when things between him and Atem were going so well.

=====

If all plays were as intriguing and well-rounded as this one, Yugi thought he needed to go to them way more often starting now. The fact that Atem had done a great job in his mind did help him appreciate it more of course, but the consensus from the crowd seemed to align with his as everyone rose up from their seat to clap and congratulate the actors. Marik next to him whistled loudly and Mana clapped like an overeager kindergarten kid. Yugi found it adorable to be honest.

Atem was standing amongst the other actors on stage and he was shining underneath the stage lights, humble pride illuminating his features, and Yugi felt proud for him too. He knew how much work the other had put into this play, how many hours he had rehearsed, how many lines of texts he had to memorize. He watched as everyone retreated from the stage and Mana grabbed his arm to request his help in lending a hand to the theater crew.

She explained that they did that after every play, put away the chairs and lift up the décor pieces backstage while the actors packed up their gears behind the scene. Marik mumbled under his breath how Mana more like felt obliged to do so for Atem’s sake, but Yugi noticed a few other people stayed behind to help out to. It took barely 30 minutes for the auditorium to look like it did every single other day, and Atem showed up right as they were finishing, getting a clap on the back from another actor.

Yugi took in the sight, trying not to stare. Atem was wearing his hair up as he always did, his dorky glasses although he had been wearing contacts for the play, a black hooded sleeveless vest over a red and black long sleeve shirt and his trademark jeans and boots. He still had some leftover eyeliner from the play, but the rest of his face looked freshly washed. He had his backpack on and his coat in the crook of his arm as he walked their way.

Yugi himself had opted for a two-toned blue flannel and a pair of black jeans, as well as his trusted converse shoes. He had gone for the ponytail look too, unconsciously grabbing the purple hair tie Atem had given him a few weeks ago. The weather had warmed enough, but still required him to carry around his jean jacket.

Apparently, the trio of friends had some sort of ritual and Yugi found himself following them to a 24h diner a little further away from their school that served, to Marik’s opinion, the best desserts around town and free refills on coffee. Yugi did not even have time to congratulate Atem personally that Mana was grabbing his arm and pulling him along, a bit further back from the two other boys as they trailed behind them.

The familiarity of the gesture was not lost to him, and for barely a second, he pictured himself grabbing Atem’s arm like that as they walked down the street. He shook his head as Mana opened up her mouth to speak.

“You’re a good friend to him,” she said with a smile.

He knew she was talking about Atem. Yugi scratched his cheek. He had talked to Mana a couple of times now, waving hello and arranging this ticket shenanigan with her, but they were just on the surface of knowing each other. It surprised him, but at the time, it did not. She seemed to be that kind of person. “What makes you say that?” he asked back.

The affection in her tone did not go unnoticed. “He smiles wider, he laughs louder, he looks happier.”

Yugi kicked a pebble with his shoes as he kept walking with her. His eyes landed on Atem’s back walking in front of them, talking animatedly with Marik. “Well, then I guess that makes him a good friend to me too,” he replied honestly.

Mana chuckled. “I just… worry. I’m like a mother hen to these dumb boys.”

Yugi laughed at the obvious jab. “I wouldn’t call them dumb per say.”

The girl swapped his shoulder playfully. “You know what I mean. I care about them. A lot.” She sighed softly. “I think I care about Atem the most.”

Yugi did not even think of his reply, it came to him automatically. “I care about him too.”

He felt a slight squeeze on his arm from Mana’s hands. “You should tell him that.”

Yugi blinked at her. “I think he already knows,” he answered matter-of-factly.

After all, Atem must have known this. They spent a lot of time together, they learned about each other constantly, they played games and watched episodes of TV shows, heck, they brought each other snacks and coffee. These were all signs of caring for a friend.

Mana just observed him for a second and then laughed lightly, shaking her head. “Well, I noticed people can be quite dense sometimes.”

“Oi”, Marik’s voice resonated from almost a street corner away. “Are you two slow worms coming or are we going to have to start ordering without you?”

Mana let go of his arm quickly and started running towards the diner. “Marik Ishtar, don’t you dare threaten with a lack of dessert or I swear I’m eating your piece of cheesecake too!”

Yugi jogged behind her to catch up to the rest of their groups, smiling back as Atem looked at him with his own little grin. He held the door open to let him in before following him inside, heading towards a table with two red leather booths, while Marik and Mana were already at the counter looking at the display of desserts.

He had barely sat down when Mana appeared next to him like an overexcited child. “What will you be having?”

Yugi just blinked back, stunned at the very minimal distance between their faces. “Hum… I don’t know. Do they have carrot cake?” he said, opting for his favourite dessert.

Mana nodded sharply and with an enthusiastic yelp, she went back to order his piece of cake. “Carrot cake, coming right up!”

The junior slowly turned his head to face in front of him as he heard Atem chuckle. This last one had taken a seat across from him and motioned to slide all the way down the booth which they both did. Four mugs and a thermos pot filled with coffee appeared on the table and Marik was gone just as quickly as he had appeared.

Atem took two mugs, flipped them and then proceeded to fill them with the warm beverage. Yugi automatically reached for one cream and the sugar pot, setting the cream right next to Atem’s mug. “Marik always gets cheesecake, strawberry or cherry, depending on his mood. Mana always chooses at random,” Atem explained as he poured them coffee.

Yugi stirred the sugar inside his drink, the softer clink of the spoon against the mug filling the air. “What do you always get?” he asked, curious.

Atem smiled, as warmly as his own choice of sweet. “Apple pie.”

As if one cue, said piece of apple pie appeared right in front of him, light tendrils of heat escaping it, making the single scoop of vanilla ice cream on top start to melt. “À la mode!” Mana completed, as she sat down next to Yugi with a huge piece of fudgy chocolate cake.

Marik slid his piece of cheesecake, cherry this time, on the table, taking his seat next to Atem. He sighed in bliss as he took a bite before directing his comment to his friend. “I will never understand why, though. You don’t do ice cream, like ever, except on pie.”

Yugi observed as Atem picked up a spoon instead of the fork that was given with his dessert, and spooned the perfect bite of pie and ice cream with a childish smirk. “And crumble. It’s the hot and cold mix, absolute perfection.” And he swallowed the bite, closing his eyes in delight.

Yugi decided that expression had to be sinful.

He focused his gaze on his own cake and brought a bite to his mouth, trying to hide his light blush behind his fork, and then coffee mug, when he felt the heat in his cheeks refusing to subside. He watched quietly as the three other people at the table talked about the play, about the things Atem had missed because of his rehearsals, about a guy called Bakura and his hair dye experiment that had failed drastically. Yugi could not help the smiles he kept displaying, this banter so cute and endearing to him, and the fact that he was witnessing it felt very precious to him.

Atem sent glances his way multiple times, as if to check if he was okay with all this, and Yugi replied with light nods and more smiles. It was not that he did not want to add anything to the conversation, he just wanted to listen to all of them chat amongst themselves. He would interject with a question here and there, or a short comment, but he mostly kept to himself.

Soon, the plates were empty except for a few crumbs and the mugs were refilled. Mana yawned loudly and looked at her watch, her eyes bugging, muttering something about an art class early tomorrow morning under her breath. Marik got up at the same time she did, saying he was going to walk her home whether she fought him about it or not. Yugi took out his wallet to pay for his dessert and his share of the coffee, but Mana held her hand up, saying it had already been taken care of.

Atem made the motion to stand up, but after a dismissive wave from Marik saying he could very well walk alone while the two boys could go on their own way when they both wanted too, he sat back down, asking Yugi if he was okay with that. And the junior was more than okay with that.

Tonight had been good.

No.

Tonight had been great, and part of him did not want it to end so soon.

Both boys waved their goodbyes and watched as Mana and Marik left the restaurant together, the sudden pause in the conversation making Yugi notice a soft song playing in the background. The mellow guitar fitted with his relaxed mood, and something in him clicked, about how right this all felt. Him and Atem, sitting across each other on worn leather, sipping on coffee casually and just enjoying the other’s company.

“You were really good in that play,” Yugi voiced out over the melody.

Atem’s gaze escaped to his mug, his fingers playing idly on the handle, and Yugi could see his cheeks redden. “I… hum… thanks,” he mumbled.

Yugi smiled, the picture offered to him bringing warmth to his own cheeks. “It’s a compliment, you should take it.”

Atem chuckled before offering him back his eyes. “I’m not very good at taking compliments.”

The junior bent over as if to offer the other a secret, his eyes wide with understanding. “Neither am I. I become a mess when someone hands one to me. I just don’t know what to do with it!”

Atem smirked and a spark of mischief flashed through his eyes. Yugi felt the trap as he fell right into it. “Well, then, you are a really talented basketball player, a real speedy Gonzales on your feet.”

He recoiled into his seat, pointing an accusatory finger towards the other, his tone playfully angry. “That’s totally unfair, you’re not allowed to counter a compliment with one aimed at me.”

The other raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, still smirking. “According to what rules?”

Yugi grabbed the menu from the end of the table and hid behind it, failing miserably at controlling the furious blush now colouring his cheeks. “The ones I’ve just decided on!” he retorted with a huff.

He would have ignored Atem much longer if his eyes had not fallen on a particular word in the breakfast section of the menu. He snickered and, honestly unable to stay annoyed at the other for such a trivial thing, he dropped the menu on the table between them, his finger right on the word.

Eggs-press.

“Don’t you find it hilarious that every place that serves breakfast needs to affirm their knowledge of horrible puns with the word egg?” he asked, already knowing he would have the attention of the other.

This was not the first time they had shared their love of dumb word plays, language conventions and silly exceptions. Yugi remembered fondly a conversation they had recently had about the cheesiest pick-up lines they had ever heard about that had eventually turned into him feeding Atem’s laughter with science puns that eventually had the other wheezing, trying to catch his breath between fits of laughter.

The reaction was instantaneous. “Don’t you find them eggs-quisite?” Atem’s endearing smirk accompanied his sentence.

“They’re kind of eggs-aggerated, in my opinion,” Yugi could not help but add.

“Who are you to judge, an eggs-aminator?” Atem countered quickly.

Yugi mimed clasping some invisible suspenders. “An egg-cellent one at that!”

There was a long second of silence before both of them burst laughing, unable to control it anymore. The patrons in the diner turned to understand the reason for this commotion, but both boys could not seem to care any less at the moment. The long week, the late night, the caffeine and sugar level, all of that fueled this irrepressibility that was punctuated by some snorts that just made it even harder for them to stop.

The waitress passed right next to them and cleared her throat loudly, like scolding them for disturbing the other people in the diner. Both boys took a deep breath to try and calm themselves down, but barely long enough to get a few words in.

“We should…” Atem started as he slid towards the end of the booth.

Yugi followed suit promptly. “Yeah, totally.”

They got up, both still trying to stifle their laughter as they waved to the waitress who rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless. As soon as they made it outside to the cool spring late evening air, they lost all composure and started laughing again.

After a few minutes, they started walking towards their destination and Atem produced the earbuds that they had now shared a couple of times. They settled into their rhythm, listening to another mix and just enjoying the calm surrounding them at the same time. Yugi closed his eyes for a second, just basking into the feelings this Friday night was offering to him.

The earbud threatening to slip from his ear made him open his eyes quickly, and before he could think about what he was about to do, his hands reached for Atem’s hand, only a step away from him. The spark that ignited from that simple contact, his palm flush against the other’s, even if only for the briefest of seconds as he realised what he had done, was enough to cause electric shivers to travel to the very extremities of his whole body.

Atem’s eyes landed on their connected hand as soon as he felt the touch, the touch that was gone as quickly as it had happened. The earbud that had threatened to fall off Yugi’s ear did, dangling back closer to its connected counterpart. Garnets raised slowly to meet amethysts.

“Sorry… I- You were ahead and I just- reflex- don’t mind me…” Yugi mumbled, feeling his resolve and confidence disappear, leaving him alone to deal with this whole ordeal.

Atem’s eyes escaped to the side as he muttered a reply. “No, I mean… I get it.”

There was an awkward pause, making Yugi remember the very first time they had truly interacted. Had a simple gesture reverted their whole friendship back to that level? Had a single momentarily mistake done that?

He needed to say something, anything, now, before he could not say anything anymore. “Tonight was great.”

However, as he spoke his words, so did Atem at the exact same time. “I should go.”

At those words, Yugi felt something happening inside of him, as if the reverberation of that reply had been enough to cause a crack. “You’re right, it’s late,” he answered slowly.

Atem still was not looking at him. Instead, he scratched the back of his neck nervously. “But I had fun.” But the word fun held no excitement to it, prompting Yugi to take a careful step back, creating a distance between them, both physically, but emotionally as well.

Atem took the time to put the cd player and headphones away in his backpack, and finally, his eyes were back on Yugi. The junior could not read them in the twilight, the spot where they had stopped right between two streetlights. “I’ll see you around, alright?” Atem said, sounding so casual it hurt.

Yugi could only nod and paste on the best smile he could muster, although the fakest one at the moment. “Good night, Atem.”

Atem nodded back, almost absentmindedly as he hitched the strap of his backpack back on his shoulder. “Good night.”

He slowly turned around and started walking away without another word or another glance. Yugi knew he could follow him, after all, they were still headed in the same direction, but he chose not to. He whirled around and went down a different street, one that would still bring him back home. As soon as he reached the corner and knew he was out of Atem’s sight and hearing, his footsteps accelerated and he ran.

That palm against his had felt so warm, so perfect, so fitting.

For a second, he had felt as if the stars had aligned somehow and that things were going to be perfect.

But as quickly as a fantasised shooting star, the illusion was gone and the reality set it.

Jou’s voice resonated inside his head almost in perfect rhythm with his hurried steps on the pavement.

_ Do you like him? _

_ Atem, do you like him? _

Fuck.

He did.

The realisation hit.

And hurt.

And seared itself inside his mind like a tattoo.

A beautiful mess of a tattoo.

He liked Atem as more than a friend… and he had probably ruined everything tonight because of that.

The tears pooled in his eyes and he could not find any strength or reason in him to stop them.


	5. Spring - Bloom

Atem felt the nerve endings in his fingers tingling.

He felt them all the way home.

He felt them all through the night.

He felt them the next morning.

The contact had been very brief, but it had set his whole being on fire.

A warm palm against his.

Soft fingers wrapped around his skin.

Yugi’s hand in his.

He had stopped breathing, stopped thinking, stopped-

And then the hand was gone along with the glowing heat it had brought to him.

Yugi was mumbling some excuses he could not hear over the sound of his rapidly beating heart. The earbud had left the purple haired teen’s ear, falling slowly against Atem’s jacket, as he felt the disconnection between them happen like the broken sharing of the music. His eyes lifted up to meet the purple ones he had come to find solace in and in them was panic. Worse, fear. Even worse, distance.

He felt himself speaking words, but that was all they were: words, very empty words. Bricks built up quickly around his heart, the only defense he had ever learned when he felt something threatening it. His muscles tensed all over, like an armor activating. He needed to look away from these eyes, he could not stand the piercing arrows he felt coming from them.

Hell, he needed to be out of there, back into the safety of his headphones, his books and his video games. Because this was what this felt like, like Yugi not only regretting what he had just done, but everything that had led up to this moment.

Every single one of their shared moments was thrown right back at his face, like the hardest slap he had ever felt.

Yugi took one single step back and Atem knew this was it; the first step back into what they both used to be, two strangers that had never talked to each other, two strangers that could not care less about each other.

“I’ll see you around, alright?” he spoke softly, throwing a last line before he could even stop himself from hoping.

Yugi may have nodded at that but the finality in his goodnight spoke louder than this void smile and nod he gave him. Atem answered with his own and promptly turned away to walk back home, suddenly cursing himself, noticing that Yugi would have to follow him since their houses were both this way. He kept on walking nonetheless, silently hoping that somehow, he would hear light footsteps catch up to him, that this would have all been in his head, that Yugi really had wanted to reach for his hand because he felt like it.

Just like Atem had felt like it too.

He stopped dead in his tracks.

Shit.

He had wanted it.

He had wanted to reach for Yugi’s hand as it laid on that restaurant table, fingers drumming as they chatted excitedly. He had wanted to reach for his hand as they had stumbled out of the diner, laughing like children unable to control themselves. He had wanted to reach for his hand as soon as they had both put the earbud in their own ears, the familiar beats of rock music shared between them like so many times before. He had wanted to reach for his hand then and so many other times in the previous weeks, but he had not…

He swiveled around as fast as he could, but only managed to catch a glimpse of Yugi as he walked the complete opposite direction and turned onto another street and he felt his heart being ripped out of his chest. Yugi had not even turned around, he had simply walked away from him… and the evening had ended so abruptly Atem could not even begin to believe and comprehend it.

As he laid on his bed, his eyes still open although the sun was still out, his fingers tracing the lines in his hand, trying to remember the feeling of warmth however brief it had been, he felt something slide on his cheek and reached up.

Shit.

He drove the palm of both his hands into his eyes, trying to stop the tears from coming, but failing miserably as the sunrays started peaking between his curtains.

=====

Atem spent the weekend in his manuals, studying almost all day long, occupying his mind with anything but Yugi. He left his Gameboy abandoned on his night table, his cd player in his backpack and focused on writing a much too long essay for his literature class. At one point, he even opened up the dictionary to read words so his mind would not wander back to Friday evening and what it all meant, living in the denial that Monday would eventually come.

Which it did.

Atem left his gaming console and music player at home that morning, still donning his headphones to drown the sounds around him. He felt like being back in September, the walls closing in on him as he walked along the corridors, people bumping into him as if he did not even exist. There was no smile on his face like there had been the previous weeks. There was no occasion when he raised his eyes to find a pair of purple ones in the crowd. There were no friendly waves across corridors or giddiness in his step as he walked towards a certain someone.

Someone that had not come to his locker that morning.

Someone who had not even stopped by his own locker it seemed.

Because Atem had dared look up to see if Yugi would be there, and he had not been.

He could not focus in any of his classes, although he really did try. He did not want this to affect him that much. After all, from what it seemed, Yugi and him had been friends, they had had their share of fun and games, and maybe Yugi had realised that he needed a break from him. Yugi may have been the one to reach for his hand, but it had been a reflex as he had explained and maybe Atem’s reaction to it had scared him away.

After all, Yugi had never said anything about being more than friends. Heck, a few months back, they had not even been friends at all. Maybe this was all that this relationship was meant to be, just two people meeting, getting to know each other and parting ways when things stopped going right.

Shit.

He was thinking about it again.

A hand slapped on his desk harshly.

Marik stood in front of him in the now empty classroom. “Something happened,” the blonde said without even a hello.

Atem had been able to avoid talking about everything for two days now, hiding behind fake smiles and books again, reading his way through the rest of the year’s curriculum faster than ever.

Tuesday morning, he had caught the slightest glimpse of Yugi and his heart had skipped too many beats for him to count. It was easy to lose anyone in a crowded hallway of a high school. But those eyes had met his and for a second, just a second, he could pretend that they were still friends, that the wedge between them was not growing every single day, that they would inevitably just walk towards one another and laugh about it and get back to their casual banter and games and conversations.

Yugi’s eyes had filled up with something he could not read and his hand had lifted up, his fingers had started stretching into a wave, but they had retracted and his eyes had drifted away as he was swallowed by the sea of students, gone from Atem’s sight, but not gone from his mind. Atem had reached from his cd player immediately, but found his headphones unplugged, just sitting on his head as they always did, but unable to offer him some soothing noise to cover the sound of his own inner turmoil.

Atem just ignored Marik for a second as he put all of his belongings back into his backpack, avoiding looking at the other. “Nothing happened,” he replied.

Marik grabbed his headphones from his head and yanked them around his neck, effectively grabbing his attention as well. “You’ve always been a bad liar,” he hissed as Atem turned around to face him.

Atem did not want to feel pissed, he wanted to just crawl and hide away like he always did in these situations, to retreat into his old habits of just letting the words flow over him like they could not touch him. But they did touch him, they always had, and the tension from the past few days made it too hard to not get riled up by them. “And you’ve always been sniffing around my business like it’s yours,” he spat back as he circled around Marik and left the classroom, his friend behind him.

He barely made it out of the classroom into the eerily quiet corridor abandoned by all the students already gone down to the lockers for the end of the day. Marik’s words reached his uncovered ears and they felt like an elastic yanking him back, his steps faltering at their implication. “Why aren’t you talking with short stuff?”

He stood right there in the middle of the hallway, his fingers grasping at the straps of his backpack. He was not sure if his whispered answer made it to Marik’s own ears. “Because he is not talking to me...”

His friend took a few steps towards him, his voice still reaching from behind. “What did you do?” he inquired.

Atem took a deep breath to try and swallow the lump in his throat and slowly turned around. Then he realised something. “Nothing…” he started. “I did nothing.”

Marik’s eyes were filled with compassion, but his words were stern and truthful. “Well, maybe you should have from the look on your face.”

Suddenly, Atem was back on that darkened street, standing next to Yugi, their hands connected. Then in slow motion, Yugi’s hand retracted and his expression changed from one of happiness to one of confusion, uncertainty, and then regret. Atem witnessed himself reaching back for that hand and squeezing it reassuringly, using his other hand to put the earbud back into Yugi’s ear, and then tugging him along as they continued on their way home, hand in hand.

But the scene reverted back to what had really happened, as if he was seeing it from an outsider’s point of view, him darting his eyes away, Yugi taking a step back and them going their separate ways with the most empty and dishearten goodbye ever, the whole thing sounding so very final.

He watched as Yugi walked down the street, elongating the distance between them. He wanted to scream at his illusion counterpart, to tell him to go after Yugi, to catch him, to say he would see him tomorrow, that they could talk about all this, or not. He just wanted him to say something, anything.

But he stayed frozen in place as the wedge just grew larger and deeper until it felt more like a canyon than a wedge.

He was back in the corridor, Marik now standing in front of him, waiting for his reply. “That’s the thing. I don’t know,” he finally admitted.

The blonde put both his hands on Atem’s shoulders. “You know, you don’t have to KNOW everything. Sometimes, you just gotta feel it.”

Suddenly feeling the need to drop all pretense and just feel whatever it was he was feeling, the crimson haired man let his head fall against his friend’s shoulder and a shudder of sadness shook him violently.

“Yeah, but what if…?” he whispered against the other’s shirt.

Mari’s arms encircled him and pulled him into a hug. “What if what, Atem?” he asked softly.

Atem fisted his hands in the blonde’s shirt, his eyes shut tight to prevent the emotional tears from coming back again. “What if I’m fucking scared?” he breathed out.

Marik’s embrace tightened around him. “Then he’s probably just as scared shitless as you are.”

They stayed like that until the blonde pulled away and placed both of his palms on Atem’s face, making sure the other would open his eyes and look at him. Atem’s lost eyes found lavender ones and was hit by a crashing wave of empathy. Marik smirked gently at him.

“Atem, you gotta get this out of your head that you don’t deserve this,” he told the other.

Atem blinked. “I never said that.”

He may not have said it, but he had thought it. Countless times over the last few months. How could sweet and funny Yugi find him amongst a crowd and befriend him? What had he ever done to deserve such a person in his life, such a friend, such an… everything?

Marik just smiled knowingly. “You don’t have to use words for me to understand you.”

=====

Wednesday was the same as the two previous days, empty and endless to Atem, except for the fact that Marik would throw knowing glances his way. Atem had barely slept once again, overthinking every single interaction he had had with Yugi and re-enacting them, as well as simulating what maybe their next one would be like… if it ever happened.

That day, he kept his eyes up, but there was no sign of Yugi at his locker or in the corridors. He even went to the gymnasium at lunch to catch the basketball practice, but the shorter player was nowhere to be seen on the court. He closed the door and walked back the way he came when he was grabbed from behind by his backpack and none too gently pushed against the concrete wall.

He met a pair of furious hazel eyes and a mope of sweaty blonde hair. He was stunned into silence by the sheer aggressive energy in that gaze and could only swallow slowly. The expression on Jou shifted from anger to confusion and then to resolve. His hand got hold of Atem’s arm as he dragged him towards a nook next to the water fountains.

“Come with me,” the blonde said, clearly not taking no for an answer.

Atem felt his feet slide across the tiles, the strength depicted by the other quite intimidating. “What, where, why?” he mumbled as he stumbled behind him.

Jou’s head snapped his way, brows furrowed. “Come with me or I’ll break you precious little fingers and you won’t be able to play that Gameboy of yours anymore, understood?”

Atem snapped his mouth shut and nodded vigorously, following along without another word. Jou sat him down on a bench, and Atem just sat there like an obedient child waiting to be scorned.

The blonde crossed his arms, towering over him in his still standing position. “Are you guys going to talk about it?” he asked without introduction.

Atem was not quite sure what the other was referring to. “About what?” he inquired back with a delicately raised eyebrow.

Jou’s gaze did not even falter as he looked straight at the other, seriousness all over his features. “About the fact that you like each other maybe as more than friends.”

The senior felt himself flush at the implication that everyone around them had noticed, although he had yet to even acknowledge it himself. His defenses went up again and he frowned at the other. “How would you know?” he retorted.

Jou leaned towards him, leaving but a few inches between their faces. “I know because I know Yugi. And I know from the way you look at him, from the way you talk to him. I know from the way you reacted just now.”

Oh.

_ Oh. _

Atem was once again stunned into silence. However, something registered within him, something that ignited the tiniest spark of hope inside of him.

Marik had said that Yugi might just be just as scared as he was about what was clearly developing between them.

Jou had just insinuated that they maybe liked each other as more than friends.

And yet, here he was, a mess of emotions unable to pick himself up from a bench and go find the one person that could answer all of these unanswered questions pending inside his mind, dangling over his head like the sword of Damocles.

However, Jou’s stern expression suddenly turned softer as he took a step back. There was still protectiveness in his tone, but his words held unmistakable tenderness in them. “You better get your shit together and do something. He thinks you’re running away from him.”

Atem’s eyes grew wide and he stood up abruptly. He opened his mouth, and then clapped it shut again. Was he? Running away from the other? That night, it probably felt like he had, but now…. “I’m not,” he replied.

The tall blonde smiled down at him as he retreated and headed back to the gym with one last look and advice. “Then maybe you should tell him.”

Atem once again found himself standing along in an empty hallway.

But this time, the confusion fogging up his mind started to clear up.

That night, while he was laying in bed, music playing softly from his stereo, one song in particular filling the air and his thoughts, he opened his eyes.

Yugi offering to teach him how to skate and take his hands as he would try his best to keep his balance on a skateboard as he feared for his own safety, but felt reassured by hands holding him firmly, and a smile that held confidence as he stood on the wheeled contraption.

Yugi bringing him coffee and Atem taking the time to cook muffins for the both of them that one time they had shared breakfast on a Friday morning, and Atem had imagined what it would be like to actually sit shoulder to shoulder with Yugi and maybe lay his head on the other’s shoulder and just relax together.

Yugi making that particularly awesome shot at basketball, that bright smile illuminating his features, and Atem wanting to run down the court at the end of the game, and hug him to congratulate him and maybe even pick him up from the ground just for a second because he felt like it.

Yugi walking next to him while they listened to music and Atem just wanting to grab his hand into his, rub his thumb over his knuckles softly to just feel that hand even more as they fell into stride and slowed down before they reached that street corner to prolong the moment as much as they could.

Yugi sitting on the couch for an impromptu X-Files marathon and Atem hesitating much too long before settling on the floor in fear of not being able to resist touching the other, reaching out to him, pull him close, maybe even convince him to lay his head on his lap so he could run his fingers inside his hair, and maybe, just maybe going as far as dropping the lightest of kisses in his hair.

All those times they had accidently touched and his skin had ignited from the slightest brush of fingers.

All those times he had wanted to move but had not.

All those missed opportunities.

He tossed around in bed, his eyes landing on his slowly ticking alarm clock.

=====

Thursday was hell.

Yugi was nowhere to be seen again.

Mana made it her mission to spot him, but failed drastically, much to Atem and her own chagrin.

Marik finally spotted him in a study group at the library, immersed deeply in a presentation preparation, but when Atem arrived, he was already gone.

He knew what Yugi was doing because he had done it most of his life.

Atem did the only thing he could think of, and reached out to Jou.

And tomorrow could not come fast enough.

=====

Friday passed at a snail’s pace and Atem was as distracted as they come, but he could not care less about anything. Except the maelstrom of emotions rushing through him.

He had never felt so vulnerable, but it came with the territory, and it came with opening up and doing what he felt, instead of what he overthought for once. The final bell rang and Atem climbed down the stairs to the locker hall, students rushing past him to catch their bus or ride, or simply head out of there as fast as they could, the weekend finally there for them to enjoy to the fullest.

He walked, people bumping into him, but that did not stop him, only slowed him enough for him to catch his breath. Every single time, Yugi had been the one to make the first move into their relationship. He had reached out to him that first time, saying how much he loved the song he was listening to. He had opened up the conversation about Pokémon. He had even sought him out at a bus stop in the falling snow when Atem had started pulling away.

Atem knew it was his turn to do the first move this time, now more than ever, if Yugi allowed him to.

Jou made good on his promise. Yugi was still at his locker while everyone was almost gone, trying to fill his bag while the other just kept talking and gesturing at him to grab his attention, anything to keep him there as long as he could. When the blonde caught sight of Atem, he smiled widely and excused himself loudly before turning around and walking away much to Yugi’s surprise and confusion…

… until he noticed Atem standing right next to him.

Yugi’s gorgeous purple eyes widened and Atem could see fear in them, and he wanted to see anything but that filling those amethyst irises. He did not make a move, suddenly reminded of the Little Prince and the Fox, how he had approached the animal with caution because he needed to tame him before he could reach out and touch him.

Yugi still had not moved a muscle. “You’re here,” he whispered, almost too stunned.

Atem simply nodded, offering him a tiny smile, the simplest of olive branches. “You’ve been avoiding me, right?”

The junior’s gazed filled with hesitation and apprehension. “We’re still talking?” he asked, his voice still small and low.

Atem swallowed, trying to keep his nerves in check. He may not have looked like it right now, but he felt like his heart was going to explode from beating so rapidly. He adjusted the strap of his backpack nervously. “Did you want us to stop?” he countered with.

“No,” Yugi immediately replied, his eyes shining, but instantly they dropped down to avoid Atem’s as he focused them on his trembling fingers. “… but I did something.”

Atem’s hand finally found its home as it reached Yugi’s fingers, grabbing one of the junior’s hands and intertwining their fingers together gently. There was a sharp intake of breath from the other, and time stood still for a second. “No,” Atem replied. “You just did something first.”

There was a pause, and Atem could feel the hand in his trembling and then slowly but surely steadying, not even trying to pull away, just staying there, in his, right where it seemed to belong all along.

Atem gave the lightest of squeeze to it. “Wanna walk home together?” he inquired, his own voice barely above a whisper.

Yugi finally lifted his gaze to his, nervousness still lingering in them and in his response. “Are you sure?”

Atem had never been more sure of anything in his life. “Yes.”

The veil of hesitation lifted and the senior swore he had never seen more beautiful bright eyes then those who looked back at him right at that moment. “So we’re doing this, huh?” Yugi countered with a soft smile.

Atem leaned forward, his forehead touching Yugi’s, finally feeling that closeness he had been missing for so long, the one he had been longing for and denying both of them because of his own indecisiveness and fears and doubts. Not anymore.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he confessed.

Yugi’s hand squeezed his, his eyes fluttering close and, in the cutest affectionate gesture Atem could ever think of, brushed his nose against his in the sweetest esquimo kiss. “Good, because I like having you around.”

Atem closed his own eyes and smiled, pretty sure he could feel his cheeks hurt from smiling that much, and his free hand came to cradle Yugi’s cheek, and he could feel the other’s own smile reaching there too.

Footsteps faltered loudly against the tiles and Atem crack opened one eye. He spotted Marik and Mana at the end of the corridor, and just as Mana was about to go all wild and probably yell something to ruin the soft peaceful moment, Marik slapped his hand on her mouth and dragged her away.

“Nope, let them have this. They deserve it,” Atem heard as they disappeared from his view.

This prompted both boys to start chuckling, and Yugi wiped a stray tear from his eye and Atem just wrapped an arm around him and Yugi returned the one arm embrace tenderly, before pulling away and grabbing his backpack, his hand still encased within Atem’s.

Atem’s mother would find both boys, hours later, laying on the floor of Atem’s bedroom, their heads next to each other, a forgotten bowl of cheese crackers on the floor close to them. Soft rock music was playing from one of Atem’s mixes on the stereo. Both Gameboys were still open on their chest, their games paused for god knows how long now. Their hands were intertwined as if they had never let go of each other ever since finding themselves, while they were discussing what would be their ideal team if they were a real Pokémon trainer.

Atem did not want to put a label on it.

He had never been one for labels to begin with.

But he knew that what he had with Yugi was something.

And something was more than enough for him.

It was everything to him.

And it was everything to Yugi too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, finally, happy belated birthday, deary <3
> 
> There is a playlist that accompanies this story if you ever feel curious. Here is is:
> 
> Sweetness –Jimmy Eat World  
> Teenage Dirtbag – Wheatus  
> We’re Going To Be Friends – The White Stripes  
> Tuolumne – Eddie Vedder  
> Venus – Sleeping At Last  
> Walking After You – Foo Fighters  
> Sparks - Coldplay  
> Open Your Eyes – Snow Patrol  
> Your Hand In Mine – Explosions In The Sky  
> Interstellar Hearts – Awake or Sleeping


End file.
